Michaël Borremans: Black Mould, David Zwirner

The forthcoming Michaël Borremans exhibition at David Zwirner Mayfair is the first time we find the Belgian painter and filmmaker at the London contemporary art gallery, and ranks amongst our favourite in the myriad of shows this summer.
Michaël Borremans paintings & photography
We love Michael Borremans for his eerie, lifelike portraits and landscapes, tinged with a dash of melancholy and mystery. He's also a pioneer with film and is best known for his characteristic economy of movement. A trained photographer, Borremans uses his photographic images to inform his painting practice. 
You'll discover small and large-scale paintings featuring anonymous, black robed characters at David Zwirner. These sinister figures stand alone or in groups; interacting with one another or performing strange rituals known only to themselves. They stand as a metaphor for the human condition, at once satirical, tragic, humorous, and above all, contradictory.
There are a great number of classical references in the technical virtuosity and rich tactile quality of Borremans' canvases, which give Velasquez and Goya a run for their money. But unlike the sense of realism in the Old Masters, Borremans delights in the radically unsettling and haunting quality of his images.
David Zwirner exhibition London
This might be the first time we've seen Borremans' work in London for ten years, but he is far from an outsider to the global contemporary art scene. With a major museum survey in Dallas currently, he's also had a number of solo shows in Japan, Belgium and Israel in the last year, and has works in major public collections. Discover Borremans during his stopover in London before he heads back on the contemporary art market trail.