NEW YORK, NY.- C24 Gallery announces the first solo exhibition in New York by Belgian artist Johan Van Mullem.

Johan Van Mullem’s oeuvre is characterized almost entirely by portraiture. Rather than portraying a physical similitude, his works feature surreal depictions of the subjects’ innate desires and feelings. Van Mullem finds beauty in human experience; in the lines that develop with age; and the depth of eyes that have seen something they will never forget. Above all, Van Mullem’s concern is with artistic technique and individual emotion.

The body of work describes Van Mullem’s artistic vision on the most fundamental level. The haunting power of the works in the exhibition at C24 Gallery find thematic similarities to the work of William Blake and Francisco Goya, artists both known for their attraction to the inner workings of the individual. However, Van Mullem claims no real influence or knowledge of the cultural significance of art history as a whole. Instead, he views art as an extension of the self, or rather of himself.

Johan Van Mullem (b. 1959) lives and works in Waterloo, Brussels. He was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo and spent seven formative years in Tunisia. Declared “a rising star in the modern art world” by Bob Chaundy in The Huffington Post, Van Mullem has had solo exhibitions at venues in London and Belgium. Known mainly for his powerful depiction of faces, Van Mullem’s artworks are noted for their psychological penetration and for their deep examination of the relationship between the artist and his imaginary subject.