Jorden Boulet

(b. 1990, BE)

BIOGRAPHY

Jorden Boulet is a contemporary painter, best known for his project-oriented practice with a constant reference to the idea of paradise. White beaches, palm trees, or a beautiful sunset, evoke an atmosphere of happiness, joy, perfection or freedom. However, Boulet’s paradisiacal world comes with a twist, as it is an ambiguous illusion with Kitsch, decadence, superficiality, but also elusiveness and melancholy lurking just around the corner.

From a visual point of view, the Belgian painter distinguishes himself with a bold and extreme use of color. However, Jorden Boulet himself is color blind, experiencing reality and the process of painting in a different manner, resulting in unique contrasts and confident brushstrokes. A recurring motif throughout his oeuvre is a characteristic and abstract écriture, of deceivingly random marks or scribbles on top of the picture. These marks seem to breach the illusion of the paradise, as they emphasize the distance between the viewer and the depicted paradise.

Jorden Boulet (b. 1990, Hasselt, Belgium) resides and works in Hasselt, Belgium. He was trained as a painter (MFA) at PXL MAD in Hasselt, Belgium, where the artist currently teaches in visual and audiovisual arts. In 2015, Boulet won the Wanatoe Grand Prize in Limburg (BE), after also being selected for the Godecharle ARBA ESA in Brussels (BE). He has exhibited at national and international institutions, such as Z33 House for Contemporary Art, Design & Architecture in Hasselt (BE) in 2021 or the Marres House for Contemporary Culture in Maastricht (NL) in 2020 during in the Limburg Biennale.

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

2021, Apocalypse Now (solo exhibition), Z33, House for Contemporary Art, Design & Architecture (curated by Ils Huygens), Hasselt, BE
2021, Art@work (group exhibition), Kasteel De Cellen (curated by Benedict Vandaele), Oostkamp, BE
2021, Blue Moon (group exhibition), Parkstad Limburg Prijs, Heerlen, NL
2021, Performa 4 (group exhibition), C-Mine (curated by Laurens Mariën and Lies Serdons), Genk, BE
2021, Missotti Gallery (group exhibition), Biënnale Mol-Rauw, BE
2020, Limburg Biënnale (group exhibition), Marres, House for Contemporary Culture, Maastricht, NL
2019, LFDM 1.2 (solo exhibition), Kunst-in-huis Sint-Pietersabdij (curated by Claudine Hellweg), Gent, BE
2019, The Waiting Room (group exhibition), C-Mine (curated by Koen Leemans), Genk, BE
2018, Les Fleurs Du Mal (solo exhibition), H8x12 (curated by Frank Hendrickx), Tielt-Winge, BE
2018, EuroArt (group exhibition), SubIV (curated by Bernardus Baldus and Wannes Missotten), Utrecht, NL
2018, Viriditas (group exhibition), De Mijlpaal (curated by Pieter-Jan Valgaeren), Heusden-Zolder, BE
2017, Black: De Formidabelen (group exhibition), C-Mine (curated by Liesbeth Jonckheere), Genk, BE
2017, Het Laatste Paradijs (group exhibition), A2o (curated by Niels Vaes and Gijs Coenen), Tongeren, BE
2016, Exchange Promotion (solo exhibition), Offspace.xyz (curated by Maxime van Melkebeke), New York City, US
2016, Mad Power (group exhibition), De Warande (curated by Peter De Cupere and Annelies Nagels), Turnhout, BE
2016, No Maps for These Territories (group exhibition), De Brakke Grond (curated by Alex Verhaest), Amsterdam, NL
2016, Olympus (group exhibition), Kop Artspace, Antwerpen, BE
2016, La Divina Commedia (group exhibition), CC Strombeek (curated by Luk Lambrecht), Grimbergen, BE
2015, Alors On Danse: Yardenit (solo exhibition), Gasthuiskapel, Borgloon, BE
2015, The Way We Look At the Other Space (group exhibition), Begijnhof (curated by Jolien Dirix), Hasselt, BE
2015, Seven Days of Creation (group exhibition), De Chocoladefebriek, Tongeren, BE
2015, EXIT15 (group exhibition), Herkenrodekazerne (curated by Caroline Dumalin), Hasselt, BE
2015, Godecharle (group exhibition), ARBA ESA, Brussels, BE
2014 – Gay Pastry and Racist Cappuccino (solo exhibition) De Coöperatieve (curated by arteVentuno archives), Hasselt, BE
2014, Campus Bokrijk (group exhibition), Openairmuseum Provincial domain, Genk, BE
2013, Disfigurement. Amok. (group exhibition), PXL GYM, Hasselt, BE