Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium
Hubert
BEN GIJSEMANS
Exhibition 12.02- 17.04.2016
Comic art on display
Museumstraat 9 rue du Musée
B-1000 Brussels
http://www.fine-arts-museum.be/en/exhibitions/hubert
Comic art on display at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts Publishing house Dargaud and the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium organize an exhibition of original drawings by the artist Ben Gijsemans, a Belgian comics author who chose the splendid setting of the museums as the background of his latest work “Hubert”.
The comic book honoured
The Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium wish to address all audiences and to
present a comprehensive overview of various artistic disciplines. Already in 2009, the
exhibition “Belgian Comics: Frames of Reference” in the RMFAB honoured the ninth art,
illustrating the origin of an essential Belgian style.
It is therefore not surprising that the RMFAB were excited with the idea of Dargaud to
exhibit the original drawings of Ben Gijsemans’ comic.
Furthermore, in his comic strip “Hubert”, the museum plays a key role in the character’s
universe. In “Hubert”, the reader is immersed in an original and poetic world that sheds
a new light on the museum.
A word from the author:
In my first drafts of this book, there was no mention at all of the Royal Museums of Fine
Arts … or any museum for that matter. On the contrary, none of the interests of my
protagonist then, nor his entourage, could have led him to a museum. The only thing he
was interested in after work, was going to the pub. I found a rhythm: always the same
coffee, always the same zinc bar, always the same pillars. The plot was clear, and it was
the subject of my project.
When I started this book, I had just moved to Brussels. Although this great city was
unknown territory for me, a place where everything was still to be discovered, I found
myself often returning to the Royal Museums of Fine Arts. With my profound admiration
for the Old Masters, this was hardly a surprise. Several times a week, I settled on one of
the benches in the museum, and slowly, by grinding my brain, I began to write. It always
resulted in short texts, in which I was trying to identify my protagonist and sometimes
impose a story on him. At first, I remained faithful to my initial project frame until I realized
that I had lost sight of it. The coffee had long since turned into a museum. This
transformation must have taken place somewhere between the cracks of unconnected
texts. From that moment on, the protagonist’s character took shape as well as his story. A
story in which the Royal Museums of Fine Arts were playing an increasing role. I called
him Hubert and I continued writing assiduously, perched on a museum bench.
Ben
Opening hours
12.02.2016 > 17.04.2016
Tuesday > Friday | 10am > 5pm
Saturday > Sunday | 11am > 6pm
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