exhibition in futur
Bert Mertens - Les lieux nous parlent(The places speak to us)
from February 6 to March 29, 2026
Looking is a way of being in the world. And what if we truly looked? Places speak to us…
This is what Bert Mertens' pictorial art makes us aware of. The freedom afforded by his meticulous realism allows him to detach himself from the media-driven spectacle and the commodified, ready-made experiences that are so massively imposed upon us, in order to rediscover the autonomy to question, interpret, and admire the forgotten beauty of everyday life, with its profound humanity.
In particular, Bert Mertens reveals the genius of everyday places where human work is carried out: their vibration, the unexpected tenderness or humor they contain.
https://galeriesimoncini.lu/bert-mertens/
A series of literary and musical events - Let's talk about the world differently
A series of literary events is being organized by Myriam Watthee-Delmotte (Royal Academy of Belgium, Letters Section) to highlight, in response to the work of Bert Mertens, how art—whether pictorial, poetic, or musical—bears witness to a quality of presence in the world in its diversity and the richness of lived experience. In its beauty, which it invites us not to lose sight of. And what if we talked about the world differently?
Each session, which is free to access at the Simoncini Gallery, combines interviews, readings and music.
Calendar - Let's talk about the world differently
Thursday, February 12, 2026, 6:30 p.m.
A World to Reveal
Everywhere, art and poetry preserve a space of peace and joy, even when wars and misery erupt.
Everywhere they maintain the possibility of not despairing of humanity, of believing in the strength of life.
Because they invite us to look at, hear, and question the world differently, by discovering aspects previously unnoticed, they generate sharing and set possibilities in motion.
To discuss this, we have two men committed to the long term, two creators who are also cultural ambassadors, engaged in intense and passionate work.
■ André Simoncini discusses what, "from labor to sharing," has intimately driven him for over forty years in the project he is developing at the Galerie Simoncini.
■ Pierre-Yves Soucy, poet, publisher, and critic, speaks to us about the art of Bert Mertens and what underlies the different facets of his own literary work.
Presentation and poetry readings with musical accompaniment: Myriam Watthee-Delmotte
Thursday, February 26, 2026. 6:30 p.m.
A World to Expand
Like the painter Bert Mertens, some poets don't seek the unusual or the extraordinary, but rather illuminate how the familiar can be a source of breadth.
They offer a rebuttal to what confines our vision and language within the narrowness of materialism and mercantilism.
They, too, like Bert Mertens, who worked in the medical field before becoming a painter, are bridge-builders.
Two poets and critics discuss significant poetic works that broaden our inner horizons. And the Director of the National Literature Center emphasizes how valuing literature ensures the possibility of opening oneself to the world with sensitivity, through knowledge of the treasures of the past and the stimulating inventiveness of the present.
■ Paul Mathieu discusses Luxembourgish poets (including Edmond Dune, Anise Koltz, etc.) and Belgian poets who are cross-border in life and in spirit.
■ Thierry-Pierre Clément revisits his essay *Poetry Open Window* (Samsa 2025), in which he explores his poetic connections across the Belgian, French, Scottish, and Swiss borders.
■ Nathalie Jacoby Director of the National Literature Center, discusses the importance of the work carried out by her institution.
Poetry readings and presentation: Myriam Watthee-Delmotte
Thursday, March 5, 2026. 6:30 p.m.
A World to Celebrate
The beauty of the mundane is what captivates Bert Mertens in his pictorial work. And no less so the poets, who use ordinary language to make it say more and differently.
In each work, they introduce playfulness, in the sense of a playful, often mischievous, accent, but also an interval that allows for movement and surprise. A session brimming with the beautiful energy of life.
■ Laurence Vielle poet and performer, gives body and voice to her texts.
■ Simon Ho composer, accompanies her on the keyboard.
Moderator: Myriam Watthee-Delmotte
Thursday, March 12, 2026. 6:30 p.m.
A World to Re-enchant
To instruct or to move: in the 17th century, literature and the arts were given these two functions, understood as opposites.
Must we choose?
Not for Bert Mertens, whose art documents everyday places while revealing their potential to captivate us.
Nor for certain authors who opt for a dual writing practice, both scientific and literary, with a single aim: to show that it is the way we look at the world that determines its capacity to amaze and move us (and not the other way around).
■ Belinda Canonne the author of *S’émerveiller* (To Marvel), discusses her novels and essays.
■ Myriam Watthee-Delmotte talks about her novel *Indemne. Où va Moby-Dick?* (Unharmed. Where Does Moby-Dick Go?) (Malesherbes Prize 2025) and his essay *Literature, a Response to Disaster*.
Moderator: Laurent Déom, Professor at the University of Lille 3.
Readings with musical accompaniment.
Sunday, March 22, 2026, 11:00 a.m.
An Unheard World to Be Heard
Bert Mertens works while listening to music, and his visual universe is marked by rhythm. Rhythm is a force that also animates language and gives it meaning, closely linked to the speaker's identity.
In poetry, rhythm contributes to the poem's musicality.
Setting a poetic text to music brings together two creative practices and two identities in a form that can elevate them. We will discuss the difficulties and joys of this work, particularly that undertaken using the texts of André Simoncini.
■ Jean-Pierre Deleuze composer, Member of the Royal Academy of Belgium.
■ Jean-Paul Dessy composer, Director of the Ensemble Musiques Nouvelles, Member of the Royal Academy of Belgium.
Poetry readings and presentation: Myriam Watthee-Delmot
