About us

Galerie Eurasia specializes on contemporary painting from countries
whose art is less well known than that of such leading art countries as, for
instance, France, Germany, Great Britain and the United States. We put
on display artists, often those of the younger generation, who represent
the very top of contemporary painting in their home countries, but who
have not yet gained wider inter-national recognition. As the name of the
gallery suggests, the geographical scope of our work is wide, ranging from
the East European and Central Asian countries to smaller countries in
Western Europe. In addition to this international emphasis, Galerie
Eurasia also puts on display interesting artists of the younger generation
from Belgium and the neighbouring countries.

Our policy is based on three main principles: interplay between tradition
and creation, emphasis on expression, and mastery of technique.

The first of these principles implies a recognition of the fact that interesting
new art is, as a rule, rooted in a tradition, but simultaneously, constantly
changes and recreates this tradition. Across the Eurasian continent, we try
to identify movements in contemporary art that produce new and exciting
things in a dialogue with different national and local traditions. The second
principle implies a rejection of the shallow and barren conceptualism that
has been so dominant in contemporary art in the past decades. Instead,
we emphasise the importance of aesthetic expression that derives its
power, not from individualist intellectualism, but rather from the collective
source of folk art of different traditions. And third: we are unhappy about
the fact that installations and video art have tempted creative people away
from the craftsmanship of painting. In Western Europe and the United
States, studying painting has ceased to be interesting for young talents.
Quite often, one has to look to the east in order to find contemporary
painting that is both of good craftsmanship, social relevance, and
aesthetic quality.

The key notion of the artist as a craftsman – a master of his or her craft
who pays allegiance to tradition, but is nevertheless simultaneously able to
produce novelty and re-create the rules – is the key idea in the work of
Hans-Georg Gadamer, the German hermeneutic and philosopher of art.
Since we subscribe to this Gadamerian notion of artisanship, it is for us a
natural thing to be involved both in contemporary abstract art and in
traditional applied arts. As regards applied arts, carpets are a case par
excellence. Oriental carpets are a paradigmatic case of tradition, vivid
abstract expression, and practical applicability being combined in one and
the same aesthetic object. In a manner not unlike to that of Mondrian and
Malevich in the 20th century, Islamic art banned already centuries ago
representation in search of the sublime.

Galerie Eurasia was opened in October 2003, that is, very recently, and
we cannot boast with glorious past and venerable traditions in the
European art business. The gallery is the brainchild of Mr. Timo Piirainen,
social sciences professor and art critic from Helsinki, Finland, and Ms.
Aliya Abdullina, art dealer from Kazakhstan. The concept of Galerie
Eurasia ripened and grew during many years spent on the road in Eastern
European and Central Asian countries and in touch with the community of
artists there. Since getting a grasp of the global village through
contemporary art is the essence of our activity, no other place would have
been a more natural setting for this business than Brussels, the delightful
tower of Babel located in the far western corner of the Eurasian continent,
one of the most genuinely multi-cultural cities in the world. Should you
happen to come here, please drop by and visit us.

The insignia of Galerie Eurasia is a Central Asian petroglyph depicting the
ancient sun god. As well, it can be interpreted as a symbol of creativity
and artistic expression, the aspiration of man to reach communion with the
sublime.