Open Studio Days May 2 & 3, Welcome at Lily K.

“Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” – Edgar Degas

There are moments when you notice you’ve started looking at art like you look at a shop window: neat, from a distance, with a mind full of opinions and a heart that stays just a little too quiet. Many people who want to understand art give up because of unwritten rules in galleries, jargon, or the feeling you have to find the “right” answer. That is exactly why a studio visit is surprisingly relaxing: you’re not coming to see a finished statement, you’re coming to see a person in motion.

May is the kickoff for art month in Bilzen-Hoeselt, where you can discover many artworks displayed in the windows of local businesses in Bilzen - Hoeselt. Lily K. is also opening her doors, giving you the chance to meet her in person. This year, she’s also joined by another artist in the month of May. You’ll get to know the works of John Wouters, who uses a very special technique, bringing his artworks on canvas to life in an animated film. Come discover it for yourself.

Why a studio visit feels like a reset

At Lily K., you experience a new perspective on artworks in a relaxed atmosphere, with the passionate explanations of the artist herself. You look differently. You ask different questions.

And your attention sharpens when you witness an artist’s process up close.

The barrier disappears when you meet the artist

Meeting the artist in person makes art more human—and at the same time, more complex in a beautiful way.

You hear why someone repeats a certain shape, why a color doesn’t have to be “pretty”, and why a canvas sometimes sits untouched for weeks. You also notice that the maker isn’t necessarily searching for a single correct interpretation. Often it’s the opposite: your gaze helps complete the work.

At Lily K - Art & More, this perfectly matches the way art is approached: as something that starts from authentic emotion and only later becomes an image. You feel this even more when you understand the story behind the artist, and why each piece carries a personal undercurrent. If you’re curious about that background, check the page about Lily K..

What you’ll actually learn this weekend

A personal visit won’t give you a theoretical course, but instead a series of very tangible observations. And those details ensure that later, in an exhibition or at home, you keep looking differently.

1) Materials and techniques suddenly make sense

Materials and techniques in art sometimes sound like a separate universe, until you see them up close: pastes, canvases, pigments, varnishes, wood, paper, pencil marks still shimmering below paint. You see how structure forms, how light lingers in relief, and why a work can have “depth” without any perspective tricks.

With layered paintings, like structure works, this becomes very clear: you understand why a single extra layer can shift the entire feeling.

2) You witness decision moments—and doubt

Art often looks confident in hindsight. In the studio, you notice how many choices are on shaky ground: one more line or not, remove this shape or leave it, make a color warmer or cooler. Those moments of doubt aren’t weakness; they are the work.

If you want to understand art, that insight is invaluable. You stop searching for “the message” and start seeing how an image is built out of decisions.

3) You learn to look at layers, not just the whole

A lot of people look at art in a single glance: “I think it’s pretty” or “it’s not for me.” In a studio, you learn to look at art more slowly, as if you’re reading a landscape step by step:

• first the undertone of color
• then the skin of the surface
• then the rhythms: repetition, break, silence
• and only after that, the story you bring yourself

That’s the beginning of deepening your art experience. Even with works you thought you already knew, you’ll spot new details later, because your eyes are trained to see traces of their making.

Contemporary art in Belgium: closer than you think

Contemporary art in Belgium isn’t only alive in major museums or art fairs. It lives in studios, small galleries, in places where makers and viewers can really talk. That may be the most underestimated wealth of our country: here you can relatively easily bridge the gap between the work and the person behind it.

A studio visit fits perfectly into this. It’s not a formal event, but an encounter that often stays with you because of its simplicity. You literally stand next to the work in progress. And you notice: this isn’t about codes, but about attention and honesty.

The art season in MAY feels like a new beginning for many. Walking into a studio during this time does the same, but more intimately. You leave with:

• more calmness in how you look
• more respect for slowness and craftsmanship
• more desire to not “understand” art, but to experience it

And that’s exactly what makes an authentic art experience so valuable: it doesn’t stay in the studio, it travels with you.

From looking to choosing: when a visit becomes practical

Some visitors come purely out of curiosity. Others suddenly feel: I want to see this work more often, in my own space. Then looking becomes very concrete, without pressure. At Lily K - Art & More, you can not only discover, but also figure out what fits, and even get to know works through hire purchase. That makes art more accessible, especially if you like to take your time living with a work before deciding.

If you’d like to plan a studio visit, have questions, or just want to see what’s possible, you can easily get in touch via the contact page.

Finally: take your time, gain a new perspective

You don’t have to be an expert to let art come close. You don’t even have to know what style you “should” appreciate. A personal meeting with the artist can be enough to reset your perspective, because you see how real the process is: searching, building, editing, starting again. After that, you no longer look at a painting as a finished product, but as a trace of attention.

Don’t plan a classic outing, but a moment in a studio. Who knows, it might be exactly the break you needed—and the beginning of a way of seeing that stays with you.