Soleil Noir
22 October 2026 › 19 March 2027
Soleil Noir presents this autumn at Villa Empain nearly one hundred works by exclusively Belgian artists. Spanning 130 years of artistic creation, the exhibition invites visitors to explore the work of Léon Spilliaert alongside major figures of modern and contemporary art.
The exhibition unfolds through themes such as the self-portrait, the nude, melancholy, landscape, and the North Sea. An exceptional selection of more than thirty works by Léon Spilliaert enters into dialogue with creations by his contemporaries, including James Ensor, Constant Permeke, Edgar Tytgat, George Minne, and Henry Van de Velde. The exhibition also highlights the profound influence of this Belgian artistic tradition on subsequent generations, from Luc Tuymans and Thierry De Cordier to Hans Op de Beeck and Michaël Borremans.
An invitation to discover the many echoes that connect the great masters of Belgian art with the artists who continue to shape the way we see the world today.
Léon Spilliaert, Pierre Alechinsky, Francis Alÿs, Liliane Badin, Georges-Marie Baltus, Michael Borremans, Andrée Bosquet, Jean Brusselmans, Anto Carte, Arthur Craco, Oscar de Clerck, Thierry de Cordier, Wim Delvoye, Paule Deman, Valerius de Saedeleer, Gustave de Smet, Léon de Smet, Charles Doudelet, James Ensor, Anne Marie Finné, Didier Henry, Floris Jespers, Laure Kasiers, Tamar Kasparian, Fernand Khnopff, KRJST, Georges Le Brun, Marthe Massin, George Minne, Jenny Montigny, Sofie Muller, ‘Oen ‘One, Hans Op de Beeck, Constant Permeke, Armand Rassenfosse, Odilon Redon, Fabrice Souvereyns, Luc Tuymans, Edgard Tytgat, Henry Van de Velde, Ludwig Van de Velde, Michiko Van de Velde, Rinus Van de Velde, Gustave Van de Woestyne, Ariane Van Dievoet, Leen Van Hulst, Jan Van Imschoot, Théo Van Rysselberghe, Loic Van Zeebroek, Rik Wouters.
Image Léon Spilliaert, La courbe de la Digue, 1907 (detail)
Chinese ink wash, brush, pen and pencil on paper
Private collection
Léon Spilliaert, Pierre Alechinsky, Francis Alÿs, Liliane Badin, Georges-Marie Baltus, Michael Borremans, Andrée Bosquet, Jean Brusselmans, Anto Carte, Arthur Craco, Oscar de Clerck, Thierry de Cordier, Wim Delvoye, Paule Deman, Valerius de Saedeleer, Gustave de Smet, Léon de Smet, Charles Doudelet, James Ensor, Anne Marie Finné, Didier Henry, Floris Jespers, Laure Kasiers, Tamar Kasparian, Fernand Khnopff, KRJST, Georges Le Brun, Marthe Massin, George Minne, Jenny Montigny, Sofie Muller, ‘Oen ‘One, Hans Op de Beeck, Constant Permeke, Armand Rassenfosse, Odilon Redon, Fabrice Souvereyns, Luc Tuymans, Edgard Tytgat, Henry Van de Velde, Ludwig Van de Velde, Michiko Van de Velde, Rinus Van de Velde, Gustave Van de Woestyne, Ariane Van Dievoet, Leen Van Hulst, Jan Van Imschoot, Théo Van Rysselberghe, Loic Van Zeebroek, Rik Wouters.
Image Léon Spilliaert, La courbe de la Digue, 1907 (detail)
Chinese ink wash, brush, pen and pencil on paper
Private collection
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