Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium

Emily Mae Smith stages this brush-broom figure in various spaces: a 17th-century interior, a rocky exterior, a cave, etc. She accompanies it with props and objects borrowed from Symbolism (skull, flowers, still life...) and Surrealism. In her works, she readily places direct references to art history and Magritte’s work: like an apple, a burnt-out candle, rocks... Sometimes, even a Magritte painting appears within her works, creating a poetic mise en abyme. 

Beyond reference or allusion, the connection between Emily Mae Smith’s paintings and those of René Magritte also shows a keen sense of image construction and a taste for visual trickery. Both artists have chosen to work with the figure of the “double-self,” the former with the man in a hat and the latter with broomstick, making each their self-portrait. Finally, their painting technique with well-defined contours, as well as the presence of text within the image or the “shown-hidden” aspect, give a strange dimension to their paintings, placing the viewer in a state of questioning, perplexity, but also contemplation. 

Smith also shares with Magritte a certain dark humor, as she enjoys playing with her « double-self ». By giving her character multiple forms, sometimes classic : posing as a creative genius, sometimes submissive: relegated to its condition as a household object, dreaming of faraway places... She then uses it to question the place of women in painting and in our society. One trick hides another. 

This exhibition is supported by Petzel, rodolphe janssen, Perrotin and the generous donors, Benjamin Khakshour, Justine Freeman and Robert Lowinger.

Copyright : René Magritte, The Domain of Arnheim (1962), RMFAB, Brussels / foto: J. Geleyns - Art Photography, © Ch. Herscovici, with his kind authorization c/o SABAM Belgium I Emily Mae Smith, Offering (2024) courtesy of the artist, rodolphe janssen, Brussels, and Petzel, New York