Catherine van Pottelsberghe

Through her paintings, Belgian artist Catherine van Pottelsberghe de la Potterie unveils her universe tinged with depth and light, drawn from the central lands of Africa.

Catherine van Pottelsberghe spent her childhood and youth in Katanga. There, she developed her first plaster workshops, her first drawings, and her initial three-dimensional research in stones, pigments, oil, and clay.

Katanga’s geological universe and colors inspired Belgian based artist Catherine van Pottelsbergh with a passion for stone, minerals, geology, and metallurgy. The harsh contrast of life in Kolwezi, shaped by intense sun and labor, prunes away every branch of existence, until all that remains is the naked trunk plunging into the icy ground of a leaden Belgian winter.

Artistic Journey:

After 25 years as a sculptor trained in visual and space arts, artist Catherine van Pottelsberghe explored stone, having honed her skills in the quarries of Dinant and Mazy, as well as the sites of Laeken. Her geological research in these regions, along with her expertise in the forge, lost-wax casting, and micro-metallurgy, culminated in monumental sculptures. From 1989 to 1994, she continued her education at the Ecole supérieure des arts visuels de la Cambre.

Catherine’s craft also extends into crystallography, where the artist explored tectonic movements and spatial organization. This passion for both science and art led her to Spain, where she furthered her research as an artist sculptor at the University of Valencia, specializing in stone, lead, pigment, and earth.

A serendipitous encounter then brought Catherine to Greece, where she delved into the marble quarries and stone-cutting workshops. For five years, Catherine van Pottelsbergh worked at the intersection of art and science, studying robotics, artificial intelligence, and tactile color interpretation. These experiences helped her develop a unique approach to interpreting colors and mythology through tactile forms.

In Athens, Catherine’s monumental work elevates her art to transcendence. Memories of the city—white marble structures, cracked ruins, and earthquake-ravaged walls—are central to her creative expression. Working with pigment and oil on linen in her makeshift Greek studio, Catherine reflects on historical testimonies of life.

Recent Work:

In 2006, after returning to Belgium, Catherine found new depth in her Paintings. Through patronage and a series of oil paintings, she expressed a previously hidden universe, exploring themes both collective and personal. Her art has since been consecrated by the rites of lived experience.

Catherine van Pottelsbergh creates large contemporary colorful abstract paintings with pigments that have become her signature.

Exhibitions:‍

• 2024: Alexia Werrie Gallery, BE
• 2023: Alexia Werrie Gallery, BE
• 2022: Alexia Werrie Gallery, BE
• 2021: Alexia Werrie Gallery, BE
• 2020: Artefact Gallery, BE
• 2016: Shape Shifting, Beukenhof Phoenix Galleries, BE
• 2016: Beeldenstorm, BE
• 2016: Entrepôt Opek Leuven, BE
• 2016: Eurantica, BE
• 2016: A3F Paris, FR
• 2016: AAF Brussels, BE
• 2016: Antique and Art Event, Luxembourg
• 2016: A3F Nantes, FR
• 2015: Cas-co vzw, BE
• 2015: A3F Montpellier, FR
• 2015: A3F Mulhouse, FR
• 2015: Onder den Torren Leuven, BE

‍