Interview
Rony Van den Block
Rony was born in Vilvoorde and raised in Meise where in 1971, he was awarded the winner of the municipal drawing contest.
He studied at Sint-Lukas Institute Brussels and Jan Portaelsschool Vilvoorde.
After his studies, Rony moved to Edegem, working as an art director in large advertising agencies. After a few years, he started his own graphic agency, which has been running for many decades. His agency caters to national and international clients, always from an artistic perspective.
Rony enjoys figurative and abstract drawing and painting.
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“As a child growing up on the outskirts of Brussels, I was passionate about drawing, and thanks to my eye for detail, I won the local drawing competition. I had to rebel heavily at home before I was finally allowed to go to the Sint-Luksinstitut art school, where I really felt at home. I chose to study advertising and design, and because there were no computers at that time, this was the toughest drawing course in the whole school—after all, you had to be able to draw everything you thought of!
About 25 years ago, I bought a building (popularly called a block) and started using it in my art. Those first works in that direction were still rough and very simple. I’d caught the painting bug, but I didn’t see the point of continuing to paint to stock up. Coming out with my work didn’t occur to me. Instead, I continued to work in my sketchbooks and made block drawings with smaller blocks. Due to the disappearance of social life during the COVID period, I got the idea of turning one of those sketches into a painting and insert an image at the same time.
With that, my personal style was born. I couldn’t stop. Moreover, people spontaneously started asking if they could buy one of the works. Because of a friend who set a good example, I decided to set up my own exhibition, which was a huge success in terms of appreciation for my work, but also through good sales. A first gallerist also came up and immediately offered me a permanent place in her gallery. From then on it became a real roller-coaster, from one solo exhibition to the next.
Today, some of my works are permanent collections in several galleries. Recently, I was selected for the London Art Biennale. All this in less than two years.”
What does your work aim to say? Does it comment on any current social or political issues?
“I grew up in full-punk time, and we were a very critical generation. Despite the bright colors, cheerful approach and pleasant appearance of my work, it also contains a lot of social observation and criticism. For example, the Lisa, shown above, gets her name from the Mona Lisa and her mysterious smile. With the Mona Lisa, the cutting edge is the mouth, which looks mysterious. My Lisa is a swipe at social media where you’re allowed to spread hate and lies, but not the female nipple. Because my work is made up of blocks, the nipple is pixelated so then it’s ‘allowed’. Another example is the painting Tits are as Free as a Bird, the first image shown above, where a naked lady is in contact with a free tit—the bird of the same name.
The works Consequence of Mission, both shown below, are also socially charged. Consequence of Mission 620 stands for the pilgrimage of Mohamed through the desert and the settlement in Medina. Consequence of Mission 1624 stands for the pilgrimage of Europeans and settlement on the Manhattan. Both cultures sprouted from people who looked for a better life in another place, resulting in the melagomaniac buildings which as a visual representation of the popular phrase “the sky is the limit”. Two cultures that are at odds with each other today can actually be viewed as the same person who’s looking for a better life.
Put in/Put out is a portrait of a very satisfied Putin looking at a mini-work of a destroyed city.”
Do you plan your work in advance, or is it improvisation?
“I may be a bit of a control freak, but my work is very labor-intensive. The old series were painted through pure improvisation. That still happens sometimes, but most of my work is very well prepared in advance. After all, I can’t afford to have to start a piece again, so there’s a clear design phase when it comes to concept and form.
The final painting itself is purely about the pleasure and the material. Of course, adjustments are made to this depending on the balance.”
“Sanctus Protectus Phedophilus is a portrait of the pope who looks with satisfaction at a miniature work of singing choirboys.
I don’t accuse him of pedophilia, but I do accuse him of protecting pedophiles within the church.”
Are there any art world trends are you following?
“I don’t follow any trends at all. I’m not interested in that. I’m just doing my own thing, probably because my style is quite unique.
What I do believe in is a worldwide spiritual connection. I see this in several art streams arising simultaneously in different places by artists who were completely unaware of what the other is doing. This has nothing to do with following trends; it’s more about capturing the zeitgeist.”
What process, materials and techniques do you use to create your artwork?
“My work usually arises from an idea. Then I make computer simulation sketches as well as sculptures, objects or drawings in mixed techniques. The main part of my oeuvre consists of paintings, where I work with acrylic. There is no other way because a number of coats have to be dry before I can continue. With oil paint that would take months because I like to put the paint on thick.
Matter plays a major role. If you apply a thick coat of acrylic paint, when it dries it becomes flat again. That’s why I have to mix the paint with a medium so that the thickness remains and you’re left with a thick pudding, instead of running paint which is impossible to paint blocks with.
It’s also typical of my style that I leave a space between the blocks. With this method you can’t afford to make any mistakes because you can’t correct it by painting over.
A work is only finished for me if it also feels good to the touch.”
What does your art mean to you?
“Art is first a kind of therapy. Most artists are hypersensitive people—the observer—and art is the ideal means to coordinate all those stimuli. In addition, I’m addicted to beauty in all its forms, even in the most frightening snake or spider. I try to achieve that beauty in my work. I’m especially proud that I’ve created my own style. I believe that a person should only come out as an artist if they have their own thing.
Many call my work cubist or digitized, but I’m actually a classical painter in a contemporary way. Mine is more pointillism, but with cubes instead of dots.”
What’s your favourite artwork and why?
“I was, and still am a big fan of the wildness of expressionism. But the most special work I know is ‘Madonna surrounded by seraphim and cherubim’ by Jean Fouquet. The porcelain white Madonna and Jesus opposite the bright blue and bright red seraphim and cherubs is a pinnacle of minimalism and fierceness. Such work at that time is highly impressive. It’s pure contemporary art, but from 800 years ago.
From my own work, I have no favorites. I can do almost anything in terms of drawing and style due to my in-depth education. I did this for many years, even though I had nothing to come out with due to a lack of unity or individual style. Thanks to my blocks, I can now channel all those extremes. Despite the fixed theme of the blocks, each work is still a story in itself. It’s nice to see how one person loves one piece and the other another piece.”
Have you had any noteworthy exhibitions you'd like to share?
“The nice thing about every exhibition I’ve had so far is the enthusiasm of the visitors. Gallerists sometimes don’t want to give too much publicity to an expo, implying that they don’t need visitors but buyers. I don’t like this.
I always regret that a work is sold after an exhibition and disappears into a private collection. I’m proud that people fall in love with a piece and want it with them, but I really want to give as many fans or believers the opportunity to enjoy my work. They also carry my work in their mind to others, and I’m grateful for that.”
