The Lacquer Tree centers on natural lacquer, one of the world’s oldest paints, first used some 9,000 years ago. It is made from the sap of several species of lacquer tree found across Southeast Asia. As a medium, lacquer is highly specialized: its use demands planning and precision under tightly defined conditions, leaving little room for improvisation. The project is realized in close collaboration with lacquer masters, where artistic decisions are tested against the medium’s strict material logic. Through this exchange, lacquer in all its aspects comes into view, presented on its own terms.

The Transformed Bell is a reimagining of the church bell. Since the seventeenth century, when the Hemony brothers established the principles of harmonic tuning, the bell has been defined by a precise relationship between form, material, and sound. In collaboration with Royal Eijsbouts, the traditional bell profile is replaced with a radically new form while preserving its acoustic structure. These works, referred to as Bell Bronzes, appear as static objects, but remain fully functional as instruments.

Harmen Brethouwer