Alain Séchas

BPS22 is kicking off the cultural season with Belgium’s first ever major retrospective of the French artist Alain Séchas (Colombes, 1955). With pieces ranging from his first steps in the art world in the 1980s to his most recent unpublished creations, the artist presents a broad overview of his myriad works, which cover a wide range of forms (works on paper, paintings, posters, sculptures and other large installations reactivated especially for the exhibition), but have their roots in drawing. Indeed, the artist has based his work on this practice since the very beginning of his career, drawing from press cartoons, caricatures, Instagram posts, and comics, of which Charleroi is one of the historical centres.

Alain Séchas has become widely known for his figures of cats or martians, which he depicts in drawings, paintings, or sculptures – a technique which he sees as “drawing in volume.” With a few precise and sharp strokes, he instantly breathes life into his characters, placing them in humorous and relatable situations. His creations tackle both serious and trivial subjects, with a tone that aims to be funny, ironic, or disenchanted. In doing so, he places deep societal issues amidst the most trivial every day episodes. Alongside his figurative works, the artist also presents abstract paintings that question the nature of the act of painting, deliberately placed in a classic hanging arrangement.