Introduction by the museum

25 YEARS OF PHOTO WORKS

The exhibition, on a museum scale, brings together more than 90 emblematic photographic works by Ruud van Empel. Twenty-five years of creation are presented through the most striking and beautiful images of his career, some of them iconic. The exhibition will gather enigmatic portraits, lush nature, and early works.

A pioneer in digital construction, Ruud van Empel presents for the first time an exhibition of such a large scale. During 3 months, the entire career of the artist will be displayed in one place. The exhibition aims to discover or re-discover a well accomplished and extraordinary work. The show will allow the public to observe the evolution of Ruud van Empel’s work over his life, particularly concerning the mentalities and the technological developments in photography.

The exhibition ambition is to attract a broad audience, from collectors to photography lovers in Brussels, Belgium and neighboring countries, thanks to a developed communication plan. Hangar proudly welcomes this globally acclaimed photographer with whom it has build a close professional relationship. Ruud van Empel has already exhibited in this art center twice: In 2017 as part of the second edition of PhotoBrussels Festival, and in 2018 with a solo show in the front space.

Nature: 25 most renowned and unpublished photographs (on the ground floor)

Portrait: selection of 30 photographs from the past ten years (located on the first floor)

Early works: 15 small photographs from his begin- nings, and a video screening (located on the second floor).

After the display of the exhibition, Hangar aims to present the show in other countries. Hangar is currently looking for potential partners abroad. This major show will also be the subject of a monographic publication by Hangar. This publication takes the place of the second volume of the book “Photoworks 1995 – 2010”. Given the editorial success of the latest book and a collector’s book- the new publication will have good reception. Published by Hangar, the book includes texts written by Christian Caujolle, Delphine Dumont, Alex de Vries and Kees Verbeek. The book will be published in English in order to become an international reference of van Empel’s work.

This exhibition took place during the Corona Pandemic of 2020 , the original dates were March 19 to June 10, but that was postponed to May 19 to June 18, 2020