Kobe Sabbe is a painter based in Bruges, Belgium.
Bio
Born (1976) in Bruges, Belgium.
Graduated as Master of Science in Engineering from Ghent University.
Lived in Sweden and Japan for 10 years.
Self-taught painter.
Practitioner of Zen Buddhist meditation.
Exhibitions
2024
Affordable Art Fair, Hong Kong
‘Astray’ (solo), library, Beernem (BE)
2023
‘Hedendaagse Primitieven 2’ (group), Cultuurcentrum Brugge, Bruges (BE)
Down To Art Gallery, Nieuwpoort (BE)
2022
Pauste Gallery, Ostend (BE)
‘Fragile’ (group), Belfort, Bruges (BE)
2021
‘RAUM’ (group), Belfort, Bruges (BE)
2019
Keunekapel (duo), Koksijde (BE)
‘Onderweg’ (solo), keramiekatelier Perignem, Beernem (BE)
2018
AZ Sint-Jan (group), Bruges (BE)
2017
Finalist 61st Onomichi Art Contest, Onomichi (Japan)
Artist’s statement
As a child I liked to draw. Recently I found a pile of drawings from back then and noticed that, as I got older, my drawing evolved from free to artificial. Soon my creativity got blocked and I stopped.
As an engineer in a top company, I traveled the world but nevertheless felt I had reached a dead end.
I often stayed in Japan. There somehow arose an openness to question the metaphysical assumptions of the culture I grew up in, and after an intense period of study, a realization dawned on me that turned my world upside down.
After a few years of inner cleaning, it started to itch and I picked up my pencil again.
Art gives us the gift of being able to penetrate deeper truths about ourselves and the world. The artist is assigned the task of sharing his or her deepest experience of reality.
Just as matter turns out to consist of emptiness according to quantum physics, the image of the painting dissolves in paint.
Illusion is inherent in art but does not need to dominate. The image can be a way of enticing the viewer to the painting and then discovering that the work stands on its own.
Walter Swennen puts it this way: 'Painting is impossible because it tends to lean either towards the image or towards the material of the painting. The painter tries to keep the painting in balance where both things meet.'
My interest lies not so much in theme or style, but in making work that can bring about a broader experience of reality in the viewer.
The artist makes the work, but the real content is in the viewer's perception.
Kobe Sabbe, July 2022
Bio
Born (1976) in Bruges, Belgium.
Graduated as Master of Science in Engineering from Ghent University.
Lived in Sweden and Japan for 10 years.
Self-taught painter.
Practitioner of Zen Buddhist meditation.
Exhibitions
2024
Affordable Art Fair, Hong Kong
‘Astray’ (solo), library, Beernem (BE)
2023
‘Hedendaagse Primitieven 2’ (group), Cultuurcentrum Brugge, Bruges (BE)
Down To Art Gallery, Nieuwpoort (BE)
2022
Pauste Gallery, Ostend (BE)
‘Fragile’ (group), Belfort, Bruges (BE)
2021
‘RAUM’ (group), Belfort, Bruges (BE)
2019
Keunekapel (duo), Koksijde (BE)
‘Onderweg’ (solo), keramiekatelier Perignem, Beernem (BE)
2018
AZ Sint-Jan (group), Bruges (BE)
2017
Finalist 61st Onomichi Art Contest, Onomichi (Japan)
Artist’s statement
As a child I liked to draw. Recently I found a pile of drawings from back then and noticed that, as I got older, my drawing evolved from free to artificial. Soon my creativity got blocked and I stopped.
As an engineer in a top company, I traveled the world but nevertheless felt I had reached a dead end.
I often stayed in Japan. There somehow arose an openness to question the metaphysical assumptions of the culture I grew up in, and after an intense period of study, a realization dawned on me that turned my world upside down.
After a few years of inner cleaning, it started to itch and I picked up my pencil again.
Art gives us the gift of being able to penetrate deeper truths about ourselves and the world. The artist is assigned the task of sharing his or her deepest experience of reality.
Just as matter turns out to consist of emptiness according to quantum physics, the image of the painting dissolves in paint.
Illusion is inherent in art but does not need to dominate. The image can be a way of enticing the viewer to the painting and then discovering that the work stands on its own.
Walter Swennen puts it this way: 'Painting is impossible because it tends to lean either towards the image or towards the material of the painting. The painter tries to keep the painting in balance where both things meet.'
My interest lies not so much in theme or style, but in making work that can bring about a broader experience of reality in the viewer.
The artist makes the work, but the real content is in the viewer's perception.
Kobe Sabbe, July 2022