From a passion for archaeology, physics and the evolution theory, Frans Gentils creates his art. In his drawings and his paintings he combines fossil shapes, human body parts and animal elements. He often uses old industrial sites, harbour areas, landfills, as well as natural history museums as a working place, this is clearly noticeable in both subject and background. Throughout his quest, the artist noticed the similarities between fossils and the remains of human activity from society. Not only the idea of waste as upcoming archaeological discoveries, but also the influence of humans on their environment. Besides these material aspects, the mental also plays an important role. With a free spirit, the artist creates and stimulates the spectator’s imagination.
Present and past merges in his work on the way to a new ‘future’ that, as it were, surpasses Darwinism. A boundless conception of the potential evolution that embraces the mystical, a symbiosis of science and creativity.
An other facet of the oeuvre of Frans Gentils is a series of ‘dark sense’ drawings. He creates portraits in complete darkness, thus deprives himself of the visual and uses only the sense of touch. An innovative way of portrait art, with his psyche he masters here the unknown – the absolute behind body and mind.
The exhibition took place in the summer of 2020, and showed an overview of a variation of paintings and drawings. Frans Gentils is an artist who takes his place in the contemporary artworld with a very own discourse.
