26 september 2024, Yves Joris
To the paradise of alienation
In the world of contemporary painting, it is not always clear where reality ends and fiction begins. It is precisely in this twilight zone that Marilou van Lierop thrives. Her work evokes a deep sense of alienation, an elusive quality that both attracts and challenges. The exhibition titled ..… to Imparadise ..… stimulates the imagination. It is a title that suggests a paradisiacal state, but in her interpretation, most likely refers to something other than the classical vision of a utopian world. What is paradise in her work? Or is it an ironic commentary on the desire for something unattainable, something that always escapes before it comes within reach?
Her work always features recognisable elements, but they are simultaneously captured in a context of alienation and inscrutability. Her world is both familiar and strange, and it is this tension that makes her work so intriguing. With a slight surrealistic undertone, she paints a reality that constantly alludes us. This paradise is not a peaceful place of tranquillity, but a location of constant movement and change. As stated in the exhibition description: "Our eyes shift back and forth and find no rest."
In a time when many seek clear answers and well-defined meanings, Van Lierop challenges us to lose our way. Her paintings refuse to present a coherent story. They appeal to our natural tendency to create order out of chaos, but just when we think we’ve found a narrative, it slips away again. This experimentation with fragmentation and the incoherence of the parts versus the whole invites us to philosophical reflection: Can we ever truly find meaning in the complexity of life or is the search itself the essence of our experience?
Marilou van Lierop, Lat: 4°58’39,4N Lon: 46’30.OW, 2021, Shoobil
Chaos and human control
A recurring theme in her work is the human attempt to gain control over chaos. This theme resonates not only in the subjects she chooses, but also in her technique. Her delicate brushstrokes and transparent layers create a dynamic reminiscent of a continuously moving whole in which structures and patterns are only tangentially visible. We catch only a glimpse of what might exist, never the complete picture. This creates a certain degree of helplessness, a feeling that in the chaos of the modern world, humans are no longer able to exercise control.
Her work on convex surfaces, such as elements from climbing walls, further explores this theme of chaos and control. These surfaces offer no neutral basis, but disrupt our view and interpretation. We see diffuse images, balancing between abstraction and representation. These works seem to subtly critique our need to grasp a world that is becoming increasingly complex. The climbing walls, a symbol of the human attempt to ascend, seem more like a metaphor for our failure: the higher we climb, the more diffuse our view of reality becomes. Or are we, like Icarus, in danger of flying too close to the sun and crashing down again?
Marilou van Lierop, the Possibility of an Island II, 2023, Shoobil
The artificial world of inflatables
In addition to convex surfaces, inflatables form another intriguing aspect of Van Lierop's work. These inflatable objects, which initially refer to an artificial, joyful and superficial world, acquire a deeper meaning in her work, such as the use of the water walking ball in which depictions of inflatable sex dolls and Disney characters like those in Frozen appear. This contrast between the cheerful, superficial aesthetic of the inflatables and darker underlying themes raises questions about the nature of our contemporary society.
Are we not all trapped in a world of artificial joy in which superficial images and consumer goods distract us from deeper, existentially laden questions? These inflatable elements in Van Lierop's work both symbolise this superficiality and the fragility of the human experience. They are light, transparent and fragile, just like the artificial worlds we create around us to avoid the chaos of reality.
Hybrid figures and iconographic references
In Van Lierop's portraits of individuals, we often see hybrid figures that combine human and animal elements. These figures are infused with iconographic references, alluding both to the past and our modern world. They invite us to reflect on identity, on who we are in relation to the world around us. By merging human and animal, she creates an atmosphere of alienation, but also renewed reflection. What does it mean to be human in a world that feels increasingly artificial and distant?
History plays an important role in her work. References to the past are often contrasted with the virtual worlds we currently inhabit. This raises the question: How do we relate to our past in an era in which technology and artificial environments play an increasingly significant role? Are we still able to derive meaning from our history or are we increasingly trapped in a fleeting, digital reality?
Marilou van Lierop, Dog Day Afternoon, 2024, Shoobil
Imparadise lost or regained?
The title of Van Lierop's exhibition, …… to Imparadise … evokes a complex range of meanings. The word 'imparadise' suggests a movement toward a paradisiacal state, yet also implies that this state is never fully reached. It is as if we are always on our way to a paradise that remains just out of reach. In that sense, paradise in Van Lierop's work is not a utopian destination but an illusion, a mirage that continues to lure us as we wander further into the chaos of our existence.
The circle is thus complete. This idea of the unattainable paradise closely aligns with the themes of her paintings: the fragments that never form a complete whole, the chaotic structures that challenge us to find meaning where perhaps there is none. In her work, paradise is not a final destination, but a continual search, a movement toward something that always escapes us. This makes the title of her exhibition both poetic and ironic, prompting us to reflect on the nature of our desire for order, meaning and utopia.
With …… to Imparadise …, Marilou van Lierop creates a world in which alienation, ambiguity and philosophical reflection coexist peacefully. She invites us to think about our relationship to the chaos of the modern world, our attempt to find meaning in the intangible and the role of art in this search. Her paintings are not answers but questions—questions that force us to construct our own story from the fragments she offers. And perhaps that is the essence of her work, namely the realisation that the paradise we seek will never fully come within our reach, but lies within the search itself, in the exploration of meaning and chaos that makes us human.
Marilou van Lierop, ..… to Imparadise ..…, 2024, Shoobil
