Art Fair | Art Brussels: 42nd edition with Antoine Waterkeyn

TALES OF TABOO, TORTURE AND HABSBURGER HYPOCRISY

In his latest series of paintings, Antoine Waterkeyn continues his critical and narrative practice by focusing on power, myth, and the manipulation of images. Whereas he previously worked with historical references and cultural iconography, this time he takes on the figures of the Habsburg dynasty and the European nobility.

Waterkeyn explores how ancient elites still resonate in the imagination today, and how conspiracy theories—from reptilians ruling the world to aristocratic women drinking blood to preserve their youth—give these historical figures a new, grotesque relevance. The result is a visual universe in which satire, history, and contemporary paranoia merge.

His paintings balance between seriousness and absurdity, between heritage and fiction. They raise questions about how power perpetuates itself, how imagery colors our collective memory, and how conspiracy thinking becomes both a critique and a caricature of the world we live in.

Waterkeyn works with lacquer paint in multiple layers, a medium that forces him to reveal its own texture and shine. His paintings function both as autonomous objects and as parts of a larger whole: each work is a ‘prop’ in a visual theater that brings power, fear, and fascination to life.

With this series, Waterkeyn aims not only to show the dark sides of power structures, but also the fascination and imagination associated with them. The works thus open up a space where art history, social debate, and contemporary myths intersect—a critical and playful contribution to how imagery colors our history and contemporary imagination.