Eugeen Van Mieghem draws Antwerp in constant motion. In the early 20th century, the city transformed at lightning speed. Electric lighting, cars and trams were transforming the cityscape and the port was undergoing explosive growth. The city lived 24/7. Eugeen Van Mieghem recorded all this on paper. He had an eye for high and low culture, work and pleasure, love, passion and the harsh reality of life. He sketched continuously. His eye was his camera, and his hand drew with the same speed as the glances he snatched of his subjects.
The focus of this exhibition is Van Mieghem’s pastels and drawings: two techniques perfectly suited to his nervous disposition. Like a tireless reporter, he captured the dynamics of daily life in his spontaneous, rapidly-executed and whimsical sketches.

Artists: Eugeen Van Mieghem