Chaim van Luit

Chaim van Luit is an artist whose work explores the traces left by human activity. Drawing on daily observations and experiences, he develops an intuitive and often performative practice in which unexpected materials and elements from his immediate surroundings play a central role. His work builds on traditions of Dada and conceptual art, but is also securely anchored in contemporary social issues.

Without imposing a judgement, Van Luit investigates how meaning is created through the interplay between artistic production, social context and current developments. His work invites reflection on the complex and at times contradictory reality in which we live. Van Luit graduated from the Maastricht Institute of Arts in 2011 and was a resident at the Jan van Eyck Academie (2013–2015). His work has been presented in cities including Brussels, Beirut, Arles, Amsterdam and Maastricht, and is held in public and private collections in the Netherlands and abroad.

Part of The Space Between Breaths

Chaim van Luit, Breathe In, Breed Out, 2017. Mammoth hair and tape on plexiglass 100 cm x 100 cm x 1,5 cm. Courtesy of Annemie and Erik van Laethem, Hasselt (BE). Photo: Pauline Assathiany

About Breathe In, Breed Out, 2017

With Breathe In, Breed Out (2017), Chaim van Luit plays on the phrase ‘breathe in, breathe out’. ‘Breed’ refers to the breeding and reproduction of animals and plants, but also to their species and breeds. The work, made from mammoth hair, places humankind within the grand cycle of life on Earth. Although we often regard ourselves as the centre of that cycle, our existence is also transient and a matter of chance. Just like the mammoth and many other organisms, humankind is not immune to extinction. By linking breathing to reproduction, evolution and extinction, Van Luit emphasises that human existence is merely a small part of a much larger, constantly changing cycle of life and death.

Website: http://www.chaimvanluit.com/ Instagram: @chaim_van_luit