Lies Jacobs (°1964)

As an artist, I believe in the power of dialogue, experimentation, and intuition. My creative process usually begins with an object or a moment of uncertainty, from which an image or text emerges. I am interested in the unnoticed, the things, stories, memories, and people that are often overlooked. By giving voice to the unspoken, my work has social and political relevance, as it reveals things that are often ignored.

About my work

 My practice as an artist is nourished by my work in psychiatry, where I operate both as a care provider and as an artist in a visual arts studio. This dual role creates a reciprocal connection that enriches my artistic work.

In art, I see an antidote to the grand narrative – a possibility to look differently. At the same time, I realise that art can only truly resonate when the viewer takes what they see into their daily reality.

Therefore, I feel it is both my responsibility and my desire to create works that carry possibilities within them. I deliberately leave these possibilities open, so that each viewer can feel for themselves what is being opened: the space to think differently, the chance to become sensitive to something that wasn't there before.

This is why I enjoy creating interactive installations. Works that don't merely allow the spectator to look, but actively engage them and prompt them to act. I believe that by doing something, we often feel something deeper emerge.

The art of doing.

Art is not merely decoration.