Nel Bonte

Lives and works in Hoboken, Antwerp (BE)

Nel Bonte was born in Roeselare. Her practice is characterised by a pure, minimalist visual language and mainly takes shape through installations and sculptures composed of abstract elements. These elements are often rooted in fragments of everyday reality.

At Bernice, we present a selection of her rarer two-dimensional works. For these works, too, Nel Bonte starts with an object from everyday life. This may be a banal or overlooked object that she encounters in the city, on the road or in her studio – a toilet roll holder, a machine part. It can also originate from architectural details she discovers during a walk: an ornament on a façade, a door handle, a structural element. The interplay between positive and negative space is a recurring element, creating a subtle tension between presence and absence, the defined and the undefined.

Observation is an essential starting point: Bonte draws what she sees, abstracts it and translates it into sculptural forms. These sculptural explorations in turn lead to the creation of watercolours. Each work inspires the next.
Her approach is distinctly hands-on. Her studio resembles a workshop, full of materials she collects and wants to use at some point.