Don’t we all just want to be happy?

Annette De Keyser’s gallery is celebrating its thirtieth anniversary. Its owner steers clear of the beaten track and treads her own unique path. Her work cannot be captured in words; instead, it invites us to feel and recharge. De Keyser uses art to build a better world – a journey that starts with each and every one of us.

De Keyser collaborates with nine artists and the gallery currently displays both new and previously exhibited works. She has handpicked each piece based on its resonance. That everything in this world has its own vibrational frequency is a well-known physical phenomenon. Everything vibrates and can, in turn, trigger a response in something else. De Keyser amplifies the resonance of the pieces in her gallery by pairing them with ‘songs of source’, recordings of her voice. “I transform the works’ energy and frequencies into sound. As a result, the pieces resonate with each other as well as with the sound of my voice.” The colours, light, compositions and singing create an atmosphere of tranquillity and warmth. This turns the gallery into a cocoon-like setting that envelops the visitor. For a moment, we’re invited to leave the daily grind behind. This is a space of pure experience, detached from our thought patterns.

Background

“The first fifteen years were important for my personal growth,” De Keyser remembers. “I now want to focus on what I’m currently doing with my gallery. My mission is to exhibit honest and authentic art. I offer a platform to artists who express what they want and who have the capacity to radically be themselves. Artists who slavishly follow trends or who kowtow to the market’s demands leave me cold. I look for art and artists that resonate with me. I only work with high frequency people. Their art is positive and harmonic. We have a very intense collaboration: we’re a team with a circular structure, everyone plays an equally important role.”

While De Keyser’s gallery focuses on contemporary art, it is not commercial. “The emphasis is always on the art itself, on staying true to oneself. Artists are constantly growing and evolving – a process that may or may not result in presentable art. Sometimes, an artist will create a pivotal work that leads to a series of new pieces. These seminal works can’t be sold. I never put pressure on artists to produce or sell anything. Instead, they determine the tempo, leaving plenty of room for experimentation and reflection. I haven’t shown at art fairs since 2013, simply because the art that I show doesn’t align with the market. Luckily, there are several loyal collectors who are interested in what I exhibit. If I never sold anything, I wouldn’t be able to keep the gallery afloat. I’m lucky because I’ve owned this property since day one.”

Energy

Some time ago, De Keyser decided that she would only exhibit positively charged art. “It’s all about feeling the colours, the light and the sounds,” she explains. “What touches your soul and makes your heart breathe? What moves you? What resonates with you? What do you experience? What emotions does it make you feel? Taking your time and being open to sensations brings you closer to yourself. You start to feel who you are as a person; you approach the essence of life. But the experience always depends on your own sensitivity. Are you brave enough to feel?”

De Keyser is also a ‘sound healer’. With her voice as a tool, she uses the vibrational frequencies of sound to enhance the well-being of both people and the planet. “Ever since my gallery’s twenty-fifth anniversary, I’ve been combining art with sound healing. I established my first ‘resonance room’ in 2007. Since 2017, all my exhibitions have been resonance rooms – combinations of light, colour and sound. Of the artists I collaborate with, I exhibit pieces by the widest possible range. Their works all have their own specific frequency and energy. Because I offer an array of positive energies, visitors may find themselves drawn to or moved by a particular work. Once I get the selection and installation right, an exhibition can last for months. It’s all about the experience. I don’t get hung up on agendas or materiality. Instead, I focus on the invisible, on letting things take however much time they need. Which is why I’ve only held two exhibitions a year since I started the resonance rooms. One a year might even suffice, really.”

Harmony

De Keyser likes to showcase diverse media, from paintings and sculptures to digital compositions and installations. The works are invariably timeless and reflect a universal transparency. And plenty more happens ‘behind’ the artwork itself: what we see in the gallery is just a small fraction of a much larger, invisible world. Certain artists express this figuratively, others with more abstract work. Francesco Russo (Italy) and Mariëlle Soons (the Netherlands) are a perfect example of the different approaches. Both artists use a similar colour palette and sometimes even the same forms, but Russo creates abstract geometric paintings while Soons paints landscapes. In her first resonance room, De Keyser displayed their work side by side. The new exhibition also features several of their pieces. Together, they make for a harmonious whole. “I exhibit what I find important. Once it’s on display, however, I let go. I don’t need anyone’s approval and I’m not afraid of rejection. People will either relate to the work, or they won’t.”

Our conversation takes place in the office section of De Keyser’s gallery. After a while, I suddenly feel very overwhelmed. I try to concentrate on our conversation, but my gaze is constantly drawn to the wall behind De Keyser, where several digital compositions by the German artist Nassermann are hung. The busy patterns converge towards a light source. Created during the pandemic, Nassermann’s art is a window: it sucks me in and speaks to my senses. While I don’t consciously focus on his work as we are talking, a churning sensation swells up in me. The more I gaze at the pieces, the more intense the feeling becomes. Eventually, I feel dizzy and need a break. 

New

“These past thirty years have been essential in terms of laying the foundations and developing a platform,” De Keyser believes. “My gallery is an oasis of calm and peace in this chaotic world. We need to listen to our hearts and feelings, but instead, we make decisions based on reason, power and materialism. Luckily, we’re finally paying more attention to the feminine, to softness and to silent communication. Negativity and cynicism are making way for positivity and respect. I feel like it’s time for a fresh start for my gallery. The world is changing; these are fascinating times. There’s so much chaos around us – I’m sure this can only lead to the birth of something new. I’ve also noticed how visitors are becoming more open and less resistant to their feelings. Everyone’s welcome here, I’m not trying to persuade the visitors. My resonance rooms can help people transform. It’s up to visitors to decide how open they want to be. If you’re seeking growth, solutions, or changes, you’ve come to the right place. Your visit will give you whatever it is you need. It’s about the experience. That’s why I’m also open for private appointments. People need a space to feel intense emotions, undisturbed by anyone else.”

De Keyser also offers private sound healing sessions. Her voice then transforms the visitor’s energy and frequency into sound. As for me, I am not unaffected by the power of her singing and the emotions it evokes. I feel liberated.

Feeling

“I’m always present in person at the gallery to meet visitors,” De Keyser says. “Artworks are mirrors. It’s fascinating to witness what visitors take from them, and why. I adore that personal contact with the people who drop by.” Words cannot describe what happens at the gallery. It is not a place to rationalise and put conceptual labels on things. Instead, it is all about intuition and communication. Warmth courses through my body, all my cells are vibrating – an indescribable feeling. “We all have our own frequency,” De Keyser nods. “When you encounter a higher one, you can feel the urge to tune into it.”

There is plenty of pain and sadness; we feel it within ourselves and in others. We all just want to be happy, we’re all on a quest to find happiness. De Keyser’s gallery is a haven of positivity and gentleness. “The new world is rooted in justice, love, and equality. With my gallery, I create a home for these values and am helping to usher in the dawn of a new world. Instead of feeling alienated from yourself and your environment, you can connect with your feelings and the very essence of your soul. The works that I exhibit are harmonic and they will recharge you. Thanks to the power of art, this is an uplifting space, a place to breathe.”

December 2023, Indra Devriendt https://jegensentevens.nl/2023/12/willen-we-niet-allemaal-gelukkig-zijn/

Until 22 June 2024— ‘30 Years for a Better World, Resonance Room 10’ with work by Fiamma Diletta Cremonese, Louis De Cordier, Nils Erik Gjerdevik, Nassermann, Oliviero Rainaldi, Francesco Russo, ManfreDu Schu, Mariëlle Soons, Lotte Vanhamel. Open on Saturdays from 14–18 or Mon–Fri by appointment, annette@annettedekeyser.com. www.annettedekeyser.com.