Wunderkammer: Michaël Borremans's studio

Michaël Borremans radically creates a universe that functions according to its own internal logic. That internal housekeeping is also to be found in the building where he has lived and worked for the past twenty years.

A large open living area leads into a number of adjoining rooms where, as a seasonal worker, he uses the different intensities of light to draw, paint, receive guests, and sculpt. Downstairs, you find an impressive library and offices, models, a mannequin with a rocket on its shoulders, some porcelain dolls... There are torn canvases on the walls, a lot of preparatory work scattered around, and fine cupboards he managed to recover from Henry Van de Velde’s Book Tower. Climbing a steep staircase – which, since Queen Paola’s visit, has a rail – one comes on to a landing that exudes sobriety: a creaking floor, barely any electric light, and no heating. Making sacrifices, it’s all part of the job. “I’ve always been ambitious as an artist. Twenty years ago, I immediately bought something that was big enough to house my studio too, as an investment in my art. It’s great to have so much space, but I could work just as well in a small studio. I didn’t used to have one at all, and I worked then too. Either you’re an artist or you aren’t.”

Photos © Heleen Rodiers

MICHAËL BORREMANS: AS SWEET AS IT GETS • 22/2 > 3/8, di/ma/Tu, wo/me/We, vr/ve/Fr > zo/di/Su 10 > 18.00, do/je/Th 10 > 21.00, €2/6/10/12, Bozar, rue Ravensteinstraat 23, Brussel/Bruxelles, www.bozar.be
> Interview with Michaël Borremans