Svelte Thys Duivengeduld
In the garden of Svelte Thys (°1998, Duffel, Belgium), two pigeons approach each other with quiet caution. A dance of longing without urgency, where the essence lies not in arriving, but in the movement itself. This observation inspired “Duivengeduld”—a neologism that sets the tone for Thys’ current exhibition.
For years, Thys wandered the landscapes of her youth: Itegem, the village where she grew up and lived for a long time. After a period in Antwerp, she has returned to the region—though to a different place that offers new perspectives. Her gaze shifts here from the vast openness of the countryside to a more intimate scale: the enclosed world of her garden, interwoven with new cycling and walking paths. In this turn inward, her work finds new layers where human presence and nature meet in a gentle embrace. While her practice once started with detached observation, it now draws nearer to a profoundly human sentiment that touches us all: desire.
With “Duivengeduld”, Thys reflects on the beauty of desire itself—the slow immersion in anticipation rather than the linear rush toward fulfillment. She gives longing the freedom to unfold organically, to take form in its own time. It is not a lack of direction, but a trust that detours often bear richer fruit than the shortest path.
Process
The work of Svelte Thys is steeped in intentional slowness. Ideas are left to simmer for months before they are allowed to surface on canvas. In an age dominated by immediacy, she insists on the slower road—a tempo that lingers in the finished work, inviting the viewer into discovery and quiet contemplation. Even the titles of her paintings move in this rhythm: subtle signposts that guide the imagination without imposing a single meaning. For Thys, this is the gift of visual language: the image belongs to all, but its interpretation remains deeply personal.
Texture is central to her practice. By mixing oil paint with talc, the oil recedes, leaving only pure pigment behind—a matte depth in which one might almost dissolve. These muted planes are juxtaposed with glossy layers of paint that hold the viewer at a distance. Thus the canvas becomes a terrain of intimacy and detachment, closeness and withdrawal.
For this exhibition, Thys moves fluidly between formats. The smaller works are concentrated gestures, intimate explorations of light, structure, and color. The larger canvases, by contrast, follow the rhythm suggested by the painting itself—spacious movements where intuition takes the lead. This constant dialogue between restraint and release, between the close gaze and the widening horizon, forms the very heart of her practice, where research and intuition intertwine.
Katrien Meermans
- Location
- Brussels
- Date
- Now open: —
- Open Sunday:
- 12-10-2025
Selected Images
Selected Images
“With “Duivengeduld”, Thys reflects on the beauty of desire itself—the slow immersion in anticipation rather than the linear rush toward fulfillment.”
Svelte Thys Alles blijft verbeelding tot het tegendeel bewezen is, 2025
Inquire37 x 27 cm
Svelte Thys De waarheid van de oester, 2025
Inquire37 x 27 cm