The ghostly figure studies of Agnès CH Peeters reach beyond portraiture to conjure a realm of their own in which space is infinitely varied and deep, light is dispersed into swirls and pockets across every surface, and emotions are rawer — and yet more accessible. Born in Belgium and now living and working in Canada, Peeters’ work is informed by her journey of immigration, as well as her profound sense of wonder and mystery at the capacity and processes of the human mind.
Alternating between oil and layered glazes on both canvas and linen, Peeters engulfs her subjects in gauzy colors and soft edges, evoking the feathered flatness of Renoir but incorporating none of his light. Instead, Peeters allows her paintings to embrace the gentle ambiguity of a cloudy sky, both in brightness and in emotional display. In doing so, she brings out the fragile sheen of an atmosphere that would have appeared lusterless to a casual observer.