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Djos Janssens’ proposition for Zwalm raises questions on a number of levels: the place of living spaces in terms of environment, the linguistic frontiers of our country, and also the absurd and arbitrary codes that give access or not to the ownership of property. At the Bastogne Orangery as in Zwalm, a real estate sign has been reproduced in the exact likeness of those that surround us in daily life… Only it is clear that, by the way in which the artist inserts himself into the space, it represents a decoy, a false perspective that can just as easily disturb the public as leave them indifferent. For Djos Janssens, as an artist used to working in-situ, this is about being in tune with the place where he intervenes, to leave his usual surroundings (the park of a mansion, urban environment, collective exhibition) in order to melt into a more realistic landscape. The participation of the public is desired but never an obligation… An element of play and chance is also at the heart of his creative process, as if he accepts that which escapes him and reacts to accidental circumstances in order to construct his art as he goes along.

Caroline Coste

© photo Djos Janssens