Ilse Pierard

Ilse Pierard explores the delicate threshold where matter and memory converge. Her works, composed of single or multiple layers of found paper, silk paper, transparent paper or metal foil, are fragile and powerful. The abstracted oval form - the cell - a recurring motif throughout her oeuvre, functions as an archetype: elementary, universal, and charged with meanings that point to life, vulnerability and resilience.

Old documents, cardboard supports and folders carry their own history, traces of time, touch, and impermanence. They become a vessel of memory and echo, of stories that do not speak loudly but gently seep through. Her work is imbued with charged silence. Layers torn, folded, and rebuilt form a skin that breathes and catches light. This subtle interplay between revealing and concealing invites the viewer to slow down. Her works do not fix any meaning but leave space for physical, intuitive, affective experience. Born in 1976, Ilse lives and works near Antwerp. She holds a Master of Visual Arts of Sint Lukas School of Arts, Brussels.