Melting Targets

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    The series Melting Targets is a long-term exploration of change, time, and intention. Each work begins with a simple process: coloured ice melts on canvas. What follows is a play between control and surrender — between purposeful action and the randomness of physical processes.

    Conceptually, the series revolves around the setting of goals — and how those goals may disappear or shift over time. Humans continuously set goals, strive towards them, and leave traces in the process, regardless of whether the goal is achieved. This idea gains an additional layer in connection to climate goals: despite global efforts, the polar caps and glaciers continue to melt relentlessly.

    Transformations

    MT.4 Paintings

    2026 - MT.4.10. Oil Dumb (in motion)

    • Work panel with two expressive drawings on paper mounted on a large board between two chairs; a colorful screaming figure above and a lighter sketch of a figure behind a frame below.
    • Artwork seen from the back: large panel with wooden stretcher frame and visible paint splashes, positioned between two chairs in an exhibition space.
    • Large empty panel showing traces of use and stains, placed between two chairs; red paint marks visible on the floor in front of it.
    • Large work panel resting on two chairs, with a colorful expressive drawing of a screaming figure above and a lighter sketch of a figure holding a frame below; a power outlet and small white cylinder visible beneath the panel.
    • Close-up of a colorful crayon drawing with diagonal strokes, where a small yellow frame is positioned and a pencil indicates a selection.
    • Scissors with a red handle rest on a drawing on paper; a rectangular cut-out marks a fragment with signature and color accents.
    • Black jar labeled “Asphaltlack in Terpentinöl” next to protective packaging material on a table; in the background, a drawing mounted on a panel appears out of focus.

    • Stretching a canvas bearing traces of transformation that had been lying on the studio floor.

    • Applying the word “Oliedom” as the base and starting point of the canvas.

    • Cutting out the signatures from the drawings “Overdruk” and “Buismans” from the series 'Older Drawings.'

    • Emergence of two 'Naming-Value Butterflies' (process not yet completed).

    • Definitively attaching the drawings “Overdruk” and “Buismans” onto the canvas.

       

    • Further working on both sides with asphalt varnish.

    2026 - MT.4.9. Mass (in motion)

    • Abstract form in red, brown, and green spreading across a white surface, with a central circular opening or inserted round element and a mist of spray paint above.
    • Studio floor fully covered with paper showing paint splashes and imprints; in the background two large canvases with circular motifs leaning against the wall.
    • Blue sculptural figures and forms mounted in an aluminum construction system on wheels; one figure hangs from a beam, another lies bent over a rounded shape, with a painting in the background.
    • Group of colorful sculptural elements on wheels, including stylized heads and torsos in red, blue, and black, arranged in a white space with a painting in the background.
    • Two blue sculptural constructions within an aluminum frame system; one figure hangs from a structure while another is attached upside down to a platform, against a white wall with a painting.
    • Back side of a large canvas resting on two chairs, showing the texture of the linen and a handwritten signature at the bottom right.

    • 2025: One of the first canvases of this project: MT.2 (2018) was reduced to a square format.

    • Dripping a grey sphere onto the canvas.

    • Adding a yellow-orange color and thick, downward blue lines.

    • Experimenting with various setups in the studio.

    • 2026: Stretching the work to continue working on the other side.


    2026 - MT.4.3. MAGA (in motion)

    • Linen canvas developed as an interpretation of the American flag with horizontal bands and a field of circles in the upper left; the text “MAGA” appears on the color side.
    • Large studio space with multiple canvases against the wall, including works with circular forms and flag-like compositions; paint traces and sheets of paper are scattered across the floor.
    • Close-up of a red-white-blue canvas based on the American flag, featuring a star-shaped stencil and a circular stamp-like form hovering above the surface; spray mist and drips are visible.
    • Canvas with an American flag composition lies on the floor, with overpainted layers and drips; in the background another canvas with a black circular structure and a metal construction.
    • Large canvas with an American flag structure in red, white, and blue, overpainted with transparent rectangular forms and dripping paint that distorts the image; the text “MAGA” is integrated into the composition.
    • Sculptural installation on wheels with a pink figure-like object in an aluminum frame; on the wall behind hangs a canvas based on the American flag with the text “MAGA”.
    • Back side of the linen canvas showing its structure, traces of paint, and the imprint of the flag composition; edges with staples remain visible.
    • Linen canvas as an interpretation of the American flag with horizontal bands and a field of circles in the upper left, presented flat against a white wall; the text “MAGA” appears on the color side.
    • A canvas I began during the exhibition Transformatiestudio nr. 1 in 2024 (150 × 150 cm).
    • 2025: continued development in the studio.
    • 2026: sewn addition of circles and stripes referring to the American flag.

    2026 - MT.4.5. The Scissors

    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.5 The Scissors, front side of the canvas with a red target circle around a central image of a historical figure behind a red grid, with paint splatters and dripping marks on raw linen.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.5 The Scissors, back side of the canvas with a painted cutting pattern for a brown shirt, scattered pattern pieces with small red scissors and dripping paint along the lower edge.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.5 The Scissors, first layer from MT.3 with red target circles and a faint head shape in the center with paint dripping downward.

    • Transformation of the canvas MT.3.2 into a sewing pattern for a “brownshirt” during the exhibition Transformatiestudio nr. 1 in 2024.

       

    • 2025: Sewing the work Cutting History (2003) onto the back.


    2026 - MT.4.8. Scoring with Goals

    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.8 Scoring with Goals, back side of the canvas in its final stage with a small sewn-on painting and traces of the construction and stitching process on the raw linen.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.8 Scoring with Goals, one side of the canvas in its final stage, suspended in an aluminum construction with a green target circle and a sewn-on painting in the center.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.8 Scoring with Goals, process image with a green target circle and white lines, still without the sewn-on canvas Shooting Apples for Dogfood.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.8 Scoring with Goals, process view of one side with a green target circle and central composition, still without the later drawn lines.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.8 Scoring with Goals, detail of the stitched seams attaching a smaller oil painting into the larger canvas.
    • Shooting Apples for Dogfood, original oil painting with a white dog among green apples, geometric shapes and a metal food bowl in the foreground.
    • Warning Bullet, original painting with a close-up of a face and hand, overlaid with arrows, lines and graphic shapes.
    • Originating in 2024 during the exhibition Transformatiestudio nr. 1 on a square canvas of 150 × 150 cm.
    • Applying a base layer with drips of melting ice paint in green and white.
    • Painting the lines of a football field as an initial image of demarcation and play.
    • Sewing the canvases Shooting Apples for Dogfoot (2004) and Warning Bullet (2003) onto the front and back.
    • Lines from Warning Bullet were compositionally enlarged.

    2025 - MT.4.1. The people are guilty

    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.1 The People Are Guilty, final result with concentric circles in red, yellow and green and the text “HET VOLK IS SCHULDIG” with dripping paint.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — first version of the work with black concentric circles and white rings with paint dripping downward.
    • 2025: Addition of the words 'Het volk is schuldig' (The people are guilty) and colors referencing the sequence of a traffic light.
    • The canvas MT.3.5 was reused in my studio. (150 × 150 cm)

    2025 - MT.4.2 White Flag Over a Russian Landscape

    Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.2 White Flag Over a Russian Landscape, canvas with a white flag on a pole above a red and blue landscape with paint dripping downward.
    • A canvas I started during the exhibition Transformatiestudio No. 1 in 2024. (150 × 150 cm)
    • 2025: addition of the flag and extra colors.

    2025 - MT.4.4. The people follow

    Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.4 The People Follow, canvas with concentric circles and the text “HET VOLK VOLGT” with paint running downward in long drips.
    • 2025: Started a blank canvas. (150 × 150 cm) with the words 'Het volk volgt' (The people follow).

    2025 - MT.4.7. Resurrection of Ukraine

    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.7 Resurrection of Ukraine, composite canvas with a painted architectural structure and three sewn-in images of a falling figure above a highway.
    • Large exhibition space with a work in progress on the floor showing green concentric paint circles; in the background a blue-yellow canvas with dripping paint, a worktable with paint jars, and a mobile structure.
    • Three large canvases against the wall: on the left a green work with a white grid structure, in the center a brown layered canvas in a frame, and on the right a blue-yellow painting with circular traces; paint and materials are scattered across the floor.
    • Blue-yellow painting with concentric circles and vertical drips, overlaid with an orange geometric shape; in front a chair and next to it a worktable with paint jars and materials.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.7 Resurrection of Ukraine, detail of a sewn-in image of a falling figure above a highway.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.7 Resurrection of Ukraine, detail of the sewn-in figure with visible stitching in the canvas.
    • A canvas I began during the exhibition Transformatiestudio No. 1 in 2024. (150 × 150 cm)
    • I used the colors of the Ukrainian flag. I let the drips run upward to create an upward movement.
    • Later, three canvases from the Racer Malevich project were sewn onto this canvas.

    2025 - MT.4.6. Gleeuw

    Melting Targets No. 4 — MT.4.6 Gleeuw, canvas with a black lion-like form and the letters G-L-E-E-U-W in yellow and black, with paint dripping downward.
    • GLEEUW: a portmanteau of the words 'geeuw' (yawn) en 'leeuw' (lion).
    • A canvas I started during the exhibition Transformatiestudio No. 1 in 2024. (150 × 150 cm)

    2025 – Continuation of the project Intra Muros

    • Melting Targets No. 4 — studio setup with a canvas of the American flag and a painting with black concentric circles beside the installation used to create the works.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — studio view with several canvases on the floor showing paint traces and imprints from the working process.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — studio view with canvases on the floor showing traces of paint, lines and drips created during the transformation process.

    2025 - Traces of Transformation

    During the first live setup at CCDA Lommel, I placed strips of canvas on the floor — which led me to the idea of Traces of Transformation.
    I prepared a series of 150 × 150 cm canvases with eyelets and spread them across my studio to collect traces from various activities and materials.
    Each canvas exists as a work in progress, without a fixed goal.


    2024 - First live setup

    During my solo exhibition Transformation Studio no. 1: Warm or Cold at CCDA Lommel, the installation was presented live for the first time.
    A working area was created within the exhibition space where, throughout the duration of the show, I melted ice targets and continued working on canvases.
    Strips of canvas were laid on the floor to capture the flow of melted paint.

    • Melting Targets No. 4 — exhibition view with installation, canvases with concentric circles and a projection, Transformation Studio No. 1: warm or cold, CC De Adelberg, Lommel.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — working installation with adjustable metal armature above a canvas where black concentric paint rings form, Transformation Studio No. 1: warm or cold, CC De Adelberg, Lommel.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — working process during the exhibition with green concentric circles on a horizontal canvas, Transformation Studio No. 1: warm or cold, CC De Adelberg, Lommel.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — exhibition view with installation, canvases and work table during the making process, Transformation Studio No. 1: warm or cold, CC De Adelberg, Lommel.
    • Melting Targets No. 4 — overview of the live working space with installation and several canvases from the project, Transformation Studio No. 1: warm or cold, CC De Adelberg, Lommel.

    Transformation: from Melting Targets canvases to bird form

    During Transformation Studio no. 1: Warm or Cold, I temporarily folded five canvases into the shape of a bird.

    • Melting Targets No. 3 — exhibition view with a series of paintings with concentric circles that are later folded into a bird shape, Transformation Studio No. 1: warm or cold, CC De Adelberg, Lommel.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — folded canvases from the series form a large bird-like sculpture on the wall, Transformation Studio No. 1: warm or cold, CC De Adelberg, Lommel.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — detail of the folded paintings forming a bird-shaped installation, Transformation Studio No. 1: warm or cold, CC De Adelberg, Lommel.

    2024 – Melting Targets no. 4

    Melting Targets No. 4 — renewed installation with adjustable metal structure above a canvas where black concentric paint circles emerge during the exhibition Transformation Studio No. 1: warm or cold.

    Melting Targets no. 4 further refines installation no. 3.


    Mounted on wheels, this version is easily movable and allows both the height of the ice discs and the diameter of the circles to be adjusted.

     

    The stainless-steel moulds used to freeze the ice discs were replaced with 3D-printed holders made of yellow ABS material. This makes the installation more flexible and opens new possibilities to explore the dialogue between structure, chance, and time.

    2023 - Adjusting the format of the canvases

    The canvases from Melting Targets no. 3 were later resized. Originally measuring 170 × 140 cm, I decided to make them square to reinforce the visual effect of the target. The new format became 140 × 140 cm when stretched.
    After each process is completed, the canvases are removed from their aluminium frames. Eyelets along the outer edge allow the works to be suspended freely.

    • Melting Targets No. 3 — painting with concentric circles in red, green and yellow with paint dripping downward.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — painting with red concentric circles and white rings from which long paint drips run downward.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — painting with blue and green concentric circles with yellow paint dripping downward.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — painting with blue circles and rust-coloured rings with paint running downward in long streaks.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — painting with a black background and white concentric circles with paint dripping downward.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — painting with black, blue and red concentric circles with yellow paint running downward.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — painting with a red centre, white ring and blue outer circle with long paint drips downward.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — painting with white concentric circles in blue and yellow with paint dripping downward.

    MT.3.1 tot MT.3.8 (MT: Melting Target)


    2019 _ 2020 – Melting Targets no. 3

    Melting Targets no. 3 evolved from the first two versions. Instead of placing a metal stand on the canvas, I attached the ice discs to a rotating metal structure suspended above it. As the discs melt and spin, they drip and form a new, larger target on the canvas.

    This installation unites several domains: it generates paintings, incorporates a technical-constructive component, and involves a physical transformation of matter — ice becomes water, and water dries into traces of paint.

    The setup allows for great variation: the thickness of the paint, the tilt of the canvas, the order in which the discs melt, or the height of the targets can all be adjusted. When the installation is active during an exhibition, the painting process can be experienced live.

    The meaning remains related to the earlier works — a reflection on goals and their traces — but here I also include an art-historical reference to the Target paintings of Jasper Johns.

    • Melting Targets No. 3 — video still of rotating ice targets mounted on a metal armature above a canvas where red and white drip circles appear.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — video still of the dripping process where rotating ice targets create concentric rings of red and white paint on the canvas.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — video still with a close-up of a white ice target while drops of paint leave circular patterns on the canvas.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — video still of several rotating ice targets spreading red and white drops in concentric circles around the stand.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — video still of the dripping process where the rotating targets form a pattern of red and white circles on the canvas.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — studio setup with a metal structure for rotating ice targets in front of a large canvas with concentric paint rings.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — canvas with red, white and blue concentric circles from which long paint drips run downward.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — studio setup with metal structure, large canvas with concentric rings and a freezer containing moulds for the ice targets.
    • Melting Targets No. 3 — working installation with a metal armature above an elongated canvas where coloured concentric paint rings appear.

    Start 2018 – Melting Targets no. 1 and no. 2

    • Melting Targets No. 1 and No. 2 — exhibition view with Melting Targets No. 1 on the left, consisting of a painting above a video still of the process, and Melting Targets No. 2 on the right, with the canvas on the left and a video still of the process on
    • Melting Targets No. 1 and No. 2 — exhibition view with Melting Targets No. 1 on the left, consisting of a painting above a video still of the process, and Melting Targets No. 2 on the right, with the canvas on the left and a video still of the process sho
    • Melting Targets No. 1 and No. 2 — exhibition view with Melting Targets No. 1 on the left, consisting of a painting above a video still of the process, and Melting Targets No. 2 on the right, with the canvas on the left and a video still of the process sho
    • Melting Targets — a frozen ice target with concentric red rings lies in a freezer on a board.
    • Melting Targets — several frozen ice targets with coloured rings lie in a freezer.
    • Melting Targets — components of the mould for the ice targets: a metal holder, a perforated disc and a round silicone mould.
    • Melting Targets — the metal holder with perforated disc placed inside the round silicone mould.
    • Melting Targets No. 1 — stand with three ice targets above a square canvas on the floor.
    • Melting Targets No. 1 — melting ice target drips red, blue and black paint onto the canvas.
    • Melting Targets No. 1 — larger pools of red, blue and black paint spread across the canvas as the ice melts.
    • Melting Targets No. 1 — final painting with large flowing shapes in black, blue and red.
    • Melting Targets No. 2 — setup with a metal stand holding three frozen ice targets with concentric rings above a white canvas.
    • Melting Targets No. 2 — melting ice targets drip red, blue and green paint onto the canvas.
    • Melting Targets No. 2 — further melting process as coloured paint spreads around the stand.
    • Melting Targets No. 2 — final melting stage where the ice targets have disappeared and pools of paint cover the canvas.
    • Melting Targets No. 2 — final painting with a large organic shape of red, green and dark pigment around a circular imprint.

    Melting Targets no. 1 and no. 2 form the first configuration in which I experimented with acrylic paint and water as materials.

    It is a performative artwork: I place a stainless-steel mould with ice discs on a canvas. As the ice melts, the coloured water drips down, evaporates, and leaves a pattern of colour behind. Depending on the mixture of pigments, the amount of paint in the ice, the ambient temperature, and the absorbency of the canvas, each work develops differentl

    In the video work, the final results are presented as if part of an exhibition. In the upper left of the video, I placed a canvas on a wooden base, intending to reuse the base later for a new painting. However, during the process, the paint seeped underneath and into the base, binding both together irreversibly. What was initially meant as a temporary support thus transformed into a permanent part of the painting.

    The right-hand canvas in the centre was reused in 2025 in the installation Melting Targets no. 4. The other two panels are flatscreens displaying the process.

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