Contemporary artist Natalie Arsenow shines a light on women in exhibition at Brussels Parliament

It is time for women to step into the limelight, insists Natalie Arsenow, who is currently showing her intricate female portraits in the exhibition Sorry that I am not sorry at the Brussels Parliament.

The title is an appeal for women to unapologetically make their voices heard; a message chosen to chime with International Women’s Day on 8 March.

Arsenow deliberately chose to stage the free exhibition in the grand neoclassical rooms of the seat of city power during the annual celebration of women’s achievements. Since honing her distinctive technique that she calls “geometric hatching”, the Brussels-based artist and teacher has almost exclusively drawn women.

Her portraits are largely inspired from old masters. “I think it is time for women to shine and I’m hoping that I can contribute a little with my art,” she says. And her message for this year’s global day? “Dare to be proud of what you are doing and speak out.”

Close to 50 works on display are presented chronologically to reveal Arsenow’s evolution as a contemporary artist over the past five years. They include large-scale drawings that took some two months to complete as well as small-format works.

If she studied fine art and history of art at university in Germany, Arsenow nevertheless considers herself self-taught. “We very much did what we felt like and any technique I learned was from my fellow students,” she remarks.

Her signature style was originally inspired by British artist Josh Bryan who does something similar in ink. She was quickly drawn to its meditative quality. “It’s like being in a bubble, time just flies by and you are unaware of anything else around you,” she says of the practice. “There’s a lovely quote from a young artist who when asked why she loved painting, responded ‘because the world goes quiet’.”

Arsenow slowly developed her own variation of the style, adding other elements such as colour. “It wasn’t as easy as it looks. The skin of the image is made up of triangles, but two triangles that are next to each other can never be filled with lines that go in the same direction. They all vary but still have to give the impression of shape and volume.”

Born in Germany to a South Korean mother and Serbian father, Arsenow has lived in Paris, Seoul and Los Angeles as well as Brussels. She feels that subconsciously Asian art has influenced her technique in its meticulous detail.

“I love the focus on one thing; that’s why I never have backgrounds in my works as it would take attention away from the main subject,” she says. Korea’s tradition for ceramics is another inspiration. “It’s known for its crackle glaze, which I adore and try to achieve in my geometric hatchings.”

Arsenow draws a comparison between this famous glaze and gender equality in society. “From afar everything looks perfect and blended, but as you come closer, you see that it’s broken. Equality is improving, but I wish that it would also go faster in the art world.”

While she loves the international flair of Brussels and recognises the considerable offer of art in the capital, she believes the major institutions remain mastodons. “There are now lots of open calls for women artists only, but in museums and galleries there’s a big gap between male and female artists.”

As well as juggling her art practice with teaching in a local secondary school, she guides at the Royal Museum of Fine Arts. “At least five years ago, just for fun, I walked around and counted the number of female artists. There were seven in the whole of the museum, although there were loads of naked women painted by men,” she comments.

This dearth of female representation led Arsenow to read up on the subject and it’s one of the reasons for her focus on female portraits. “Women are often humble, anonymous and in obscurity, which is why I decided to put them on a pedestal, to make them seen and be known,” she concludes.

Sorry that I am not sorry
Until 2 April
Monday to Friday 10.00-17.00
Rue du Lombard 67
Brussels