Bedroom

A sphere hanging by a wire floats in front of a grey background. It is a lamp above the artist's bed - part of a cushion can be seen at the bottom of the composition. Without the title, it would be impossible to place the painting in space and time or precisely understand its subject.

The lamp in the centre is the only source of light in Luc Tuymans’ Bedroom. Far from clarifying the perception of space or indicating a time of day, its flatness contributes to the work’s enigmatic, placeless nature. It is more reminiscent of the cold, impersonal light of electronic screens. Light sources are a recurring theme in Tuymans' work, including a certain type of luminescence that appears in various paintings and subjects.

Part of the Pinault Collection, Bedroom was exhibited at the Palazzo Grassi during "La Pelle" (“The Skin”), a show devoted to Tuymans’ work (2019-2020).