One thing is clear, Michaël Borremans (1963) masters the techniques of classical painting to perfection and seeks with his work rapprochement with the tradition of drawing and painting. He establishes a dialogue with the remains that have been handed down to us from the 18th and 19th centuries and combines them with a reflection on the contemporary man and society. He produces images using the ‘old’ media’, mainly painting and drawing, and more recently film and even sculpture too. With a lenient irony he creates pictures that are characterised by a cheerful tragedy in themselves. His attention to detail and the small size of his works create an intimacy between viewer and work. He manipulates the scale and proportions making his work sometimes reminiscent of sketches for stage sets or spatial interventions.

In his retrospective at BOZAR in Brussels, Borremans proves to be an ideal contemporary pupil of the old masters and art history (many prominent artists come to mind). As sweet as it gets, as the exhibition is titled, consists of two parts. The first rooms contain his paintings, pious and serene with a bit of a cruel and lugubrious edge.

Birds are pinned on pins or bodies are lying on the floor (dead perhaps?). Small canvases dominate with the exception of a few large ones as the recent The Angel (2013), The Avoider (2006), or The Devil’s Dress (2011). The second part of the retrospective presents several of his fims and a large set of drawings in darkened rooms. A totally different atmosphere prevails. Grimness, surrealism and a slight feeling of uneasiness characterise this part, with amongst others the drawings The House of Opportunity (Im Rhönlandshaft) (2004) or Milk (2003).

Although the retrospective is fairly general, its strength are the amount and the richness of Borremans’ small works. The smaller, the better. Borremans’ skills, the sometimes cruel, bizarre and surreal scenes and motifs are more prominent and stronger. Details are revealed and are a joy to watch. Strange how sometimes simple images can be so beautifully intriguing and grim.

As sweet as it gets was on show until 3 August 2014 at BOZAR in Brussels.