Born in France in 1995 and based in Brussels, Ethel Lilienfeld’s work examines the growing impact of the virtual body on reality and everyday life. She creates uncanny images that exacerbate the tension between fantasy and madness. Ethel Lilienfeld’s work explores issues of social norms, aesthetic standards and concepts of identity and gender. The body plays an important role in most of the artist’s proposals. By combining technology with traditional filmmaking techniques, Ethel crafts singular visual environments. Although she uses photography, video installation and film, her works are nonetheless related to sculpture, and the relationship with space is crucial in her oeuvre. In her videos, Ethel Lilienfeld works with actors, sets and objects, sometimes drawing on fiction, sometimes on reality.
After completing a master’s degree in visual arts at La Cambre (Brussels) in 2020, Ethel Lilienfeld obtained a post-graduate degree at Le Fresnoy – Studio national des arts contemporains in 2023. She has won a number of awards: Villa Albertine Grant / Étant Donnés Contemporary Art (2023); PrixFintroPrijs / Audience award and second jury prize (BE, 2023); Production grant of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation (BE, 2022); Audience award, Brussels Videonline Festival #2 at LA CENTRALE (BE, 2021); Cocof Award (French Community Commission) at Médiatine (BE, 2021); Prix des Amis de La Cambre (BE, 2020).
Ethel’s work has been presented at such venues as the FotoFest Biennial (Houston, US); MEET – Digital Culture Centre (Milan, IT); Alan Kadıköy _ Noise Media Art (Istanbul, TR); IMAL Centre for digital cultures and technology (Brussels, BE); Opéra de Lille (Lille, FR); Les Safra’Numériques (Amiens, FR); Le Cube (Garges, FR); Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles (Paris, FR); KANAL - Centre Pompidou (Brussels, BE); Z33 Museum (Hasselt, BE); La CENTRALE pour l’art contemporain (Brussels, BE); etc.
AWARDS/GRANTS
2023 Villa Albertine Grant / Étant Donnés Contemporary Art
2023 PrixFintroPrijs / Audience Award
2023 PrixFintroPrijs / Jury's Second Prize
2022 Aide à la production, Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles (laureate)
2021 Prix COCOF (Commission communautaire française), La Médiatine (laureate)
2021 Audience Award, Brussels Videonline Festival #2, LA CENTRALE (laureate)
2020 Prix Coup de coeur, Les amis de La Cambre group (laureate)
2020 Art Contest, "Female" October 2020 on Artjobs (selected)
2020 Prix Laurent Moonens (shortlisted)
EDUCATION
2021/2023 Le Fresnoy, Studio National des Arts Contemporains, FR.
2020/2021 AESS (teaching graduation) at ENSAV La Cambre in Brussels, in collaboration with the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, BE.
2015/2020 Bachelor and Master in the Sculpture department directed by Johan Muyle at ENSAV La Cambre in Brussels, BE.
2018/2019 Six-month exchange in Kuvataideakatemia, Academy of Fine Arts, Helsinki, FI.
2014/2015 La Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne, Paris, FR.
2013/2014 Les Ateliers de Sèvres, Paris, FR.
EXHIBITIONS
2024 BIENNALE CHRONIQUES (upcoming)
The Biennial of Digital Imaginaries, from 07.11.2024 to 19.01.2025, 21, bis Mirabeau, Aix-en-Provence, FR
2024 OVNi FESTIVAL COSMOPOLIS PRIZE (upcoming)
International Video Art Festival, from 29.11 to 01.12.2024, at Hôtel West-End, Nice, FR
2024 ARS ELECTRONICA (upcoming)
Ars Electronica Animation Festival, AI&Human.
From 04.09 to 08.09.2024 at Ars Electronica Center, Linz, Austria, AT
2024 I'M SORRY THAT YOU FEEL THAT WAY
Curator: Barbora Trnková.
From 10.07 to 25.08.2024 at the G99 Gallery in the House of Arts in Brno, Czech Republic, CZ
2024 EMI
"EMI" film screened in the Black Box from 01.06 to 29.09.2024 at the Photography Museum, Charleroi, BE
2024 FOTOFEST BIENNIAL
Critical Geography: FotoFest Biennial 2024 central exhibition
Curator: Steven Evans.
From 09.03 to 21.04.2024, Sawyer Yards, Houston, US
2024 FOREVER YOUNG: THE DORIAN GRAY SYNDROME
The exhibition inaugurates the Milan Longevity Summit – Rewriting Time
Curators: Maria Grazia Mattei and Clément Thibault.
From 12.03 to 02.06.24 at MEET Digital Culture Center, Milan, IT
2024 SAFRA'NUMERIQUES
Festival of Digital Arts and New Technologies
From 19.03 to 23.03.2024, Le Safran, Amiens, FR
2024 NOISE_MEDIA ART
Noise, Turkey's newest art fair
From 16.01 to 21.01.2024, Alan Kadıköy Museum, Istanbul, TR
2023 THE FUTURE OF LIVING (with AI)
Lecture series delve into the profound intersections of artificial intelligence, human creativity, and culture. From 08.12 to 09.12.2023 at IMAL -
Center for digital cultures and technology, Brussels, BE
2023 LES HEURES SAUVAGES
From 13.10 to 29.10.2023, Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles, Paris, FR
2023 PANORAMA 25
The annual meeting of the creation made in Fresnoy.
Curator : Chris Dercon.
Set Designer : Christophe Boulanger.
From 22.09.2023 to 07.01.2024 at Le Fresnoy, Studio National des Arts Contemporains, FR.
2023 HORS LES MURS - DON GIOVANNI
Exhibition echoing the opera "Don Giovanni" by Guy Cassiers.
From 05.10 to 15.10.2023 at Opéra de Lille, FR
2023 VOLTA - KULT XL
From 12.10 to 15.10.2023
Artists in residency at KULT XL Ateliers, Brussels, BE
2023 LE MIROIR D'UN MOMENT
From 24.01.2023 to 01.08.2023 at Le Cube Garges, FR
2022 PANORAMA 24, L'AUTRE CÔTÉ
The annual meeting of the creation made in Fresnoy.
Curators : Marie Lavandier, Pascale Pronnier.
Set Designer : Christophe Boulanger.
From 30.09.2022 to 31.12.2022 at Le Fresnoy, Studio National des Arts Contemporains, FR.
2022 BORDERLESS
From 13.10 to 27.10.2022, a decentralized Metaverse exhibition powered by Art From Future DAO in partnership with Protoworld.
2022 NFT & DAO
27.10.2022, at Finland French Institute of Helsinki, powered by Art From Future DAO, FI.
2022 CENDAR BRUSSELS
Initiated by Galerie Zotto, from 28.04 to 30.04 at KBK, Boulevard d'Ypres, 20, 1000 Brussels, BE.
2022 LE CHANT DES SIRENES
From 05.03 to 26.03.2022 at the CAL, Charleroi, BE.
2021 25 ARTS SECOND
Cycle of artists' films and exhibition (Mehdi-Georges Lahlou, Eva L'Hoest, Armand Morin, Mathilde Lavenne, Daniel A. Swarthnas, Ismaël Joffroy Chandoutis, Baloji, Félix Luque Sánchez, Effi & Amir, Elsa Maury, Laure Cottin Stefanelli, Noemi Osselaer, Dora Garcia, Katharina Kastner, Manon de Boer, Milena Desse, Ethel Lilienfeld, Léa Tumbarello, Jasmine Elsen).
From 24.06 to 30.06.2021, Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles, Paris, FR
2021 LET’S CHANGE, DON’T CHANGE
Group Show at Z33, Museum for Contemporary Art and Architecture in Hasselt, initiated by Stephanie de Bakker, Milan Gillard, Anne-Lore Thijssen, Mirthe Tibos and indra Wouters.
From 30.06 to 18.07/2021, Bonnefantenstraat 1, 3500 Hasselt (BE)
2021 PRIX MÉDIATINE 2021
From 28.05 to 27.06.2021 at The Médiatine, Bruxelles, BE
2021 BRUSSELS VIDEONLINE FESTIVAL #2, LA CENTRALE
A new project initiated by CENTRALE, presenting Brussels-based emerging artists, in partnership with Brussels Art Schools, from 22.02 to 28.02.21, BE
2021 FIL
Group exhibition at The House of Arts (Hélène de Gottal, Maren Dubnick, Alice Leens, Ethel Lilienfeld, Erwan Mahéo, Asia Nyembo, Elise Peroi, Chiharu Shiota & José Maria Sicilia) from 20.02 to 25.04.21.
Chaussée de Haecht 147, 1030 Schaerbeek, Brussels, BE
2021 L'ADRET ET L'UBAC
Exhibition of works by former students graduating in 2019 and 2020.
Works noticed and selected by an independent jury led by the non-profit organization Les Amis de La Cambre. from 05.03 to 21.03.21.
Curator: Lola Meotti. Brussels, BE
2020 LA CAMBRE GRADUATION SHOW
Exhibition of Master's degree projects from 11th to 13th September 2020 in the Espace Vanderborght
50, rue de l’Ecuyer, 1000 Brussels, BE
2020 PLIS
Hanging at the departure of the sculpture collection of the Fine Arts Museum of Tournai with the complicity of the director of the museum Julien Foucart. Exhibition from February 08, 2020 to May 24, 2020.
Rue de l’Enclos Saint-Martin 3, 7500 Tournai, BE
2019 HE STANDS IN AN IN-BETWEEN PLACE WHERE HE CAN BE SEEN Residence (from November 03 to 10, 2019), hanging and mediation of works of students from Brussels and Limoges. Exhibition in the gallery of ENSA LIMOGES - Ecole nationale supérieure d’art, FR
2019 NONA. DECIMA. MORTA
Group exhibition from 25.10 to 13.10.2019 in Island, a contemporary art space based in Brussels.
69, Rue Général Leman, 1040 Etterbeek, Brussels, BE
2019 ALL IN ONE
Group exhibition from 14.06 to 30.06.2019 at KANAL Centre Pompidou, museum of modern and contemporary art in Brussels.
Quai des Péniches, 1000 Bruxelles, BE
2019 THE SHAPE OF THINGS
Photo exhibition curated by Hannah Altman and Shia Conlon
Tasku Gallery, Elimäenkatu 25 A, Hel- sinki, FI
Anderson Gallery, 07 1/2 W Franklin St, Richmond, Virginia, US
2019 NOT TO BE SEEN
Group exhibition and residency at BPS22, Musée d'Art de la province du Hainaut - 22 Boulevard Solvay, Charleroi, BE
2019 SHARING NOTES (feminist gathering)
Exhibition Laboratory, Helsinki, FI
2018 OF WHAT MATERIAL IS THE INTANGIBLE MADE?
Sound installations, Satamakatu 5 Gallery, Helsinki, FI
2018 ARS (EST) CELARE ARTEM
An exhibition of GreyLight Project student work
11 rue Brialmont Saint Josse, BE
2017 LE PARASITISME DE COUVEE 2
Workshop from 09.10. to 15.10. and exhibition of student works at the Museum of Art and History of Sartènes., FR
2017 THE GREATEST PIECE OF ADVICE I CAN’T GIVE
An exhibition of student work Ancienne Brasserie Atlas
15 rue du libre examen à Anderlecht, BE
2017 THE TRUE ARTIST IS AN AMAZING LUMINOUS FOUNTAIN
(Tribute to Bruce Nauman) on the initiative of Geoffroy De Volder, exhibition at 21 Abbaye de la cambre, BE
2017 UN DISCOURS, UN DISCOURS
On the initiative of Juan d'Oultremont (with the complicity of the artists Lieven Segers & Michaël Dans) an exhibition of ERG and La Cambre bachelor students in the exhibition hall of the ERG in Brussels, BE
2016 OUT OF OFFICE
An exhibition of student work at 186 avenue Louise, Brussels, BE
2016 OMNIA SOMNIA
An exhibition of works by the artist COLIN BOOTH (GB)
A student exhibition curator : Eva de Chabanneix du Chambon, Pauline François, Ethel Lilienfeld, Morgan Mahy, Jonas Meier, Anja Raymond et Sara Zerguine, Brussels, BE
2015 EREWHON
Workshop and exhibition initiated by the artist Erwan Mahéo at CANAL WHARF, Brussels, BE