Els Dietvorst’s practice is remarkably diverse and comprises drawings, prints, sculptures, installations, films and documentaries, performative actions, and one-act plays. She uses dialogue, experiment and intuition as her main artistic strategies. She focuses particularly on the position of the outsider, pointing her gaze to/aiming her attention at those people and things that would otherwise go unnoticed. Her work has always had at its core issues such as massive migration, social conflict, homelessness, nature, climate change, and our own mortality. Inspired by the holistic approach of regenerative agriculture, she brings forward the concept of ‘regenerative art’.
Regenerative art explores creative processes that integrate social and natural systems, using art to reinvigorate the bonds between human communities and the ecosystem in which they live. It uses the work processes to create healing within the environment and communities in the whole.
In 2017 she was chosen by an international jury to win the 2-yearly Evens Arts Prize 2017.
In 2018 she won the Prize for Anthropology and Sustainable Development at the prestigious International Jean Rouch festival in Paris with her film 'I watched the white dogs of the dawn'.
In 2020, she had a retrospective exhibition *Dooltocht/A desperate quest to find a base for hope at MHKA (Museum of Contemporary Art, Antwerp). In 2024 she received the title of Doctor in Arts at the Royal Academy / University of Antwerp(B).
Dietvorst is the winner of the BelgianArtPrize 2021(similar to the UK Turner prize).
I am Programme Director and second-year Class Tutor, and a full-time Lecturer in Fine Art, Sculpture, and Expanded Practices. I teach across all four years of the BA in Art and BA (Honours) in Art programmes.
As a passionate and empathetic educator, I prioritise inclusivity and foster a supportive learning environment. I contribute actively to the academic direction of the programmes through teaching, assessment, and administration, and I play a key role in organising the fourth-year degree show.
Drawing on my own artistic practice, I bring extensive experience in sculpture, video, drawing, and printmaking. I established an Erasmus exchange programme with RAFA (Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp), enabling student mobility, and facilitated student participation in the EU CONEXUS project, with exhibitions in France and Hungary. I previously served as Research Lead for the Art Department and actively encourage students to engage in research.
In 2024, I completed my PhD, Partisans of the Real, and was awarded the title of Doctor in Arts. My research and artistic practice explore the intersections of art, society, and the environment.
As a Belgian artist working across drawing, printmaking, sculpture, installation, film, and performative practices, I advocate for “regenerative art,” integrating social and natural systems to promote environmental and communal healing. My work has received significant recognition, including the Evens Arts Prize (2017), the Prize for Anthropology and Sustainable Development at the International Jean Rouch Festival (2018), and the BelgianArtPrize (2021).
Deeply engaged in my local community, I believe art and life are inseparable and remain committed to sustainable practice, meaningful dialogue, and inclusive cultural engagement.
Research interests
1. Art as Social Bonding and Dialogue.
2. Methodology Transfer from Individuality to Collectivity.
3. Intuition, Imagination, Transformation.
4. Regenerative Art.
Solo-exhibitions(selection):
2023-24 ADRIFT(*), National tour IRL, Highlanes gallery 01-19/08 (Drogheda). Uillinn – West Cork Arts Centre, March 2024. Wexford Arts Centre and Wexford County Council, October 2024.
(*)The tour, curated by Catherine Bowe and Karla Sánchez Zepeda, will present a coherent overview of Els Dietvorst’s extensive and multifaceted oeuvre in addition to new works. Commissioned by @Wexford Arts Centre. ADRIFT is supported by the @Arts Council of Ireland and @Flanders State of the Arts.
2022 This is what you came for(*), Bozar and Centrale for contemporary art, Brussels.
(*)
2021 ‘Stones, sticks and sand. Ottypark, Antwerp(B).
2020 *Dooltocht/A desperate quest to find a base for hope, Muhka Antwerp(B)
2019 Wintrum Frod, Muzee, Ostend.
Public sculpture, commissions.
2026 Silence, Abbey of Vlierbeek, Leuven.
2023 Shelter, Pliniuspark, Tongeren.
2021 Windswept, Beaufort, Oostduinkerke.
2020 Curious minds(*), commission, Art Education in Primary Schools : Tool Kit for teachers by Els Dietvorst and Karla Sanchez, commissioned by the Wexford Art Center.
2004 Koningskinderen, Jeugdinstelling Mol.
Groupexhibitions.
2023 Ecosystems, RAFA, Antwerp, Belgium
2018 Bare Root, Wexford Ireland.
2016 Burning Ice 10-Kaaitheater, Brussels
2015 Moscow Biennale of contemporary art.
Films, written and directed by Els Dietvorst.
2017 ‘I watched the white dogs of the dawn’, 53”, creative documentary.
2014 ‘The Rabbit and the Teasel’, 53”, creative documentary
2011-14: ‘The Black lamb’, webdoc
2010 ‘A walk with ACM’, 10”, docu.
Experience.
2000-2010 Artistic director of Firefly.
2004-2008 Selected to be a member of the Arts council
2014-2020 Member of the Artist in community scheme, Wexford(IRL).
2019-2023 Masterclasses in the Royal Academy of Arts, PHD researcher.
2022-… Lecturer BA/MA hons in Art | School of Art and Design, Wexford(IRL).
Research Active (1 - 3 outputs in last 5 years)
1.Track reports: Research publications in the Arts: ‘Coastal Shrine’
