I Am Not An Artist by Atelier Van Lieshout in Brutus

Non-functionality, originality and authenticity are the holy trinity of art. The exhibition I Am Not An Artist shows how Atelier Van Lieshout has systematically undermined these foundations and rewritten the definition of art in recent decades. From 4 October to 8 December, Brutus will show old and new work by Atelier Van Lieshout.

At the very beginning of his career, back in 1987, Joep van Lieshout made a series of sculptures consisting of Dommelsch beer crates and concrete paving stones: a logical summation of standard products, modular sizing systems and coincidence. There is no place here for the artist as creative genius. The end result is coincidental but rational. After all, without the similarities between the modular sizes of beer crates and concrete tiles, the works would not have existed.

Intrigued by the fraught relationship between art and standardisation, Van Lieshout added utility value to his work in the late 1980s and early 1990s. This resulted in the production of furniture: generically designed tables, cabinets, sinks and kitchens made in unlimited editions.

Beer crates and concrete tiles up to the ceiling

Van Lieshout's research into the fundamentals of artistry and art eventually led to the creation of Atelier Van Lieshout, a company that offers tailor-made solutions to everyday problems. By reducing his role as an artist to carpenter and plumber, Van Lieshout propelled his art practice to a radical climax, which is a high or low point depending on whom you ask.

I Am Not An Artist showcases old and new work by Atelier Van Lieshout. The BraboHal contains countless sinks, tables, cabinets, toilet bowls, desks and other utensils, seemingly dumped randomly into the space. In the exhibition space Cathedral, stacks of 3,500 beer crates and many hundreds of concrete tiles extend to the ceiling. Also on display is a new computer-generated work showing the hundreds of thousands of combinations of crate stacks possible within this space. Of course, every option is equally good.

The early works represent a still-relevant pivotal point in Joep van Lieshout's 40-year career. Although his oeuvre has evolved enormously, the artist still morphs the boundaries and interpretation of art, ethics, progress and repression.