Laurence Leenaert’s paintings are a distillation of her myriad skills. Designed, painted and woven entirely by her own hand, the works take inspiration from local Moroccan crafting techniques and natural materials. Leenaert eschews the use of digital tools and machine-led interventions, believing in a purely tactile approach to her work. Building up abstract, three dimensional works with acrylic paint, wool yarn and cotton patches on rough burlap canvas, embroidery and weaving are incorporated into her painting practice to create expressive compositions. Her naïve indeterminate line and unruly geometric forms are balanced by an effortlessly refined sense of composition. These minimal marks made on a heavily textured canvas become almost reminiscent of cave paintings, hieroglyphs and runic inscriptions from ancient worlds.
‘I’m constantly looking for harmony in this important space, translating it into textiles, lines, graphics, relief.’
Her work combines the colours, materials and mirage-esque forms she finds on the edge of the desert in Marrakech, creating harmony out of the contrasting chaos of the city. The palm trees, the pink walls, the light of the sun and the busy architecture of Marrakech can be seen and felt in her paintings. After moving to Morocco in 2015, Leenaert surrounded herself with visual, material and cultural inspiration for her works, drawing from her personal experiences in a new city. Finding freedom in the city’s sense of timelessness, Leenaert admits to working impulsively, destroying more work than she makes. With a fluid method employed across her canvases, aspects from each painting often swapping and changing, her works reflect the spontaneous environment she works in.
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Phenix 1, 2023mixed media on paper48cm x 36cm (19" x 14")
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Phenix 2, 2023mixed media on paper46cm x 37cm (18" x 15")
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Phenix 3, 2023mixed media on paper46cm x 37cm (18" x 15")
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Sahab 1, 2023mixed media on paper48cm x 36cm (19" x 14")
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Sahab 2, 2023mixed media on paper48cm x 36cm (19" x 14")
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Sahab 3, 2023mixed media on paper48cm x 36cm (19" x 14")
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vagues d’argiles IVoilstick and acrylic on paper46cm x 36cm (18" x 14")
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montagnes d'argilesclay, textiles and acrylic on handwoven canvas198cm x 107cm (78" x 42")
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palmiers sur la routeclay, textiles and acrylic on handwoven canvas154cm x 113cm (61" x 44")
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route étroiteclay, textiles and acrylic on handwoven canvas194cm x 146cm (76" x 57")
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Imaraa,acrylic, oilstick and wool embroidery on canvas176cm x 150cm (69" x 59")
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oiseau dans l’oasisclay, textiles and acrylic on handwoven canvas165cm x 126cm (65" x 50")
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Laurence Leenaert
Argile et Rêves 15 Sep - 8 Oct 2022 London -
QALB DARI - Heart of the Home
Laurence Leenaert 23 Feb - 12 Mar 2021 LondonCadogan Contemporary is proud to announce Laurence Leenaert's first UK solo exhibition. Featuring twelve new paintings, the exhibition opens at the South Kensington gallery in February 2021 and is the...Read more -
Invisible Subjects
Kim Bartelt, Laurence Leenaert and Tycjan Knut 2 - 20 Mar 2020 LondonCadogan Contemporary is delighted to present Invisible Subjects, a group exhibition that brings together new work by Kim Bartelt, Tycjan Knut and LRNCE. The exhibition explores the idea of paintings...Read more
Laurence Leenaert studied Fashion Design at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent, Belgium. After completing an internship with Bless in Berlin, she launched her own design studio, LRNCE. Her designs quickly became sought after in high-end outlets such as The Conran Shop and the Picasso Museum. Moving to Morocco in 2015 allowed Leenaert to further develop her practice and Cadogan Gallery is delighted to be showing her unique paintings in London.
Selected exhibitions
2022 |
'Argile et Rêves', Cadogan Gallery, London |
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2022 |
‘Izdihar’, St Vincents, Antwerp |
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2021 |
‘Qalb Dari’, Cadogan Gallery, London |
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2020 |
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'Invisible Subjects', Group Show: Cadogan Gallery, London |
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LAURENCE LEENAERT | ELLE DECOR | ARTICLE
Isabella Prisco, Elle Decor, March 21, 2024 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | VOGUE | MENTION
Todd Plummer, Vogue, November 24, 2023 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | MILK DECORATION FRANCE | ARTICLE
Marine Decremps Beucher, MiLK Decoration France, August 3, 2023 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | SABATO BY L'ECHO BELGIUM | ARTICLE
Jeremy Callaghan, Sabato by L'Echo Belgium, June 16, 2023 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | THE NEW YORK TIMES | THE T-LIST
Kate Guadagnino, The New York Times, September 28, 2022 -
CADOGAN GALLERY | WORLD ARCHITECTURE NEWS | MENTION
Séan Thurgood, World Architecture News, August 29, 2022 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | HARPER'S BAZAAR ARABIA | INTERVIEW
Harper's Bazaar Arabia, July 7, 2022 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | CONDÉ NAST TRAVELLER UK
Tara Stevens, Condé Nast Traveller UK, January 6, 2022 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | LAMPOON MAGAZINE ITALY
Selin Hatunoglu, Lampoon Magazine Italy, August 4, 2021 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER USA
Tara Stevens, Condé Nast Traveler USA, June 4, 2021 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | VOGUE ARABIA | MENTION
Jumana Abdel- Razzaq, Vogue Arabia , May 9, 2021 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | ELEPHANT ART MAGAZINE
Charlotte Jansen, Elephant Art Magazine, April 12, 2021 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | THE FINANCIAL TIMES | INTERVIEW
Marianna Giusti , The Financial Times , February 25, 2021 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | THIS ORIENT MAGAZINE
Yasmin Rahmanzadeh, This Orient Magazine (Vol.3), February 13, 2021 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | BELLEROSE MAGAZINE BELGIUM
Bjorn Dossche, Bellerose Magazine Belgium, January 27, 2021 -
INVISIBLE SUBJECTS | WALL STREET INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE
Wall Street International Magazine , January 27, 2021 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | HOMES & GARDENS | COVER
Homes & Gardens, January 4, 2021 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | LIVING ETC | FEATURE
Living Etc, November 30, 2020 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | TELQUEL | FEATURE
Fanny Haza, Telquel, November 13, 2020 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | THE SPACES | FEATURE
Rosella Degori, The Spaces, November 4, 2020 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | DE STANDAARD | FEATURE
Dorien Knockaert, De Standaard, October 3, 2020 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST CLEVER | FEATURE
Rachel Fletcher , Architectural Digest Clever Magazine , September 21, 2020 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | NEW YORK TIMES STYLE MAGAZINE | FEATURE
Paula Hardy, The New York Times Style Magazine, May 8, 2020 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | BED THREADS BLOG | FEATURE
Genevieve Rosen, Bed Threads Blog , March 12, 2020 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | WEST-VLAANDEREN | FEATURE
Thalis Devos, West-Vlaanderen, March 5, 2020 -
INVISIBLE SUBJECTS | ANNIVERSARY MAGAZINE
Anniversary Team, Anniversary Magazine , March 3, 2020 -
INVISIBLE SUBJECTS | FAD MAGAZINE
Mark Westall, FAD Magazine , February 24, 2020 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | ZEIT MAGAZIN | FEATURE
Zeit Magazin, February 4, 2020 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | SUITCASE MAGAZINE
Carly Smith , Suitcase Magazine (Vol.29), January 8, 2020 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | WYSOKIE OBCASY | FEATURE
Wysokie Obcasy, January 2, 2020 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | WRAP MAGAZINE | FEATURE
Laura Snoad, Wrap Magazine, December 14, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | KNACK WEEKEND
Jorik Leemans, Knack Weekend, October 2, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | SURFACE MAGAZINE
Gisela Williams, Surface Magazine, September 9, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | IDEAT
Marie Godfrain , Ideat, September 5, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | GESTALTEN JOURNAL
Gestalten Journal , September 1, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | THE FINANCIAL TIMES
Grace Cook, Financial Times , August 30, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | VOGUE
Helen Jennings, Vogue , July 10, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | GRAZIA
Justine Villain, Grazia France, April 11, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | AD MIDDLE EAST | FEATURE
Jeremy Callaghan, Architectural Digest Middle East , April 8, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST CLEVER MAGAZINE
Lindsey Mather , Architectural Digest Clever Magazine , April 2, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | HNL
Liesbeth De Corte, HLN, April 1, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | AD MAGAZINE
Antonia Faltamaier , AD Magazine, February 23, 2019 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | GARDRIANA SPAIN | INTERVIEW
Adriana Gastélum, Gadriana Spain, October 15, 2018 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | THE NEW YORK TIMES STYLE MAGAZINE
Tom Delavan, The New York Times Style Magazine , September 17, 2018 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | ELLE DECOR ITALY | INTERVIEW
Valentina Mariani , Elle Decor Italy , March 12, 2018 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | SIGHT UNSEEN | FEATURE
Sean Santiago , Sight Unseen , January 24, 2018 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | VOGUE SPAIN
Patricia Moreno, Vogue Spain, December 21, 2017 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | GALERIE MAGAZINE | FEATURE
Coco Romack , Galerie Magazine , December 18, 2017 -
LAURENCE LEENAERT | METAL MAGAZINE SPAIN | INTERVIEW
Simona Colandrea, Metal Magazine Spain , August 24, 2017