Dirk Braeckman | Marieta Chirulescu | Roe Ethridge | Hans Peter Feldmann | Gideon Kiefer | Nicolás Lamas | Sofie Middernacht | Joost Pauwaert | Matt Saunders | Thomas Vandenberghe | Sybren Vanoverberghe | Thu Van Tran | Anna Vogel

Three Times Ten to the Eight

28 November 2026 - 10 January 2025 - Penitentenstraat 29, 9000 Gent BE

3 × 10⁸ represents the speed of light in metres per second. Just as a painter uses paint to create an image, a photographer works with light as their medium, using the camera as a brush. Regardless of how that light is captured, manipulated or transformed, it remains the fundamental element connecting all artists who embrace photography. Another defining characteristic of photography lies in its reproducibility. Photographic images are printed or developed, allowing for the possibility of multiple editions. This inherent potential for repetition raises questions about originality, uniqueness and the relationship between an image and its physical manifestation. In Three Times Ten to the Eight, we explore the diverse ways in which artists engage with photography, challenging its conventions and expanding its possibilities to arrive at unexpected visual languages. Through different approaches to light, materiality and image-making, the exhibition reveals the versatility of a medium that continues to reinvent itself. Within one of the gallery’s three exhibition spaces, particular attention is given to unique photographic works. These singular pieces challenge the medium’s inherent reproducibility, transforming what could exist in multiple iterations into something that exists only once. A unique manifestation of light travelling at three times ten to the eighth metres per second.

Dirk Braeckman (b. 1958, Eeklo, Belgium. Lives and works in Ghent, Belgium) is one of Belgium’s most prominent contemporary photographers. His predominantly black-and-white photographs explore the boundaries between photography and painting, focusing on light, texture, intimacy and memory. Through experimental darkroom techniques, he creates atmospheric, often ambiguous images. Braeckman represented Belgium at the 57th Venice Biennale (2017) and has exhibited at BOZAR, FOMU and Museum De Pont. His work is held in major collections, including MoMA, S.M.A.K. and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Marieta Chirulescu (b. 1974, Sibiu, Romania. Lives and works in Berlin, Germany) explores the intersection of painting, photography and digital image-making. Combining traditional painting techniques with scanning, printing and digital reproduction, she creates abstract compositions that investigate transparency, layering and the materiality of images. Her work has been presented at Kunsthalle Basel, White Cube London and Kunsthalle Lingen. She received the Lingener Kunstpreis in 2014 and was an artist-in-residence at Villa Massimo in Rome.

Roe Ethridge (b. 1969, Miami, USA. Lives and works in New York, USA) moves between commercial photography, fashion imagery and fine art. Combining carefully staged compositions with everyday subjects, his practice questions authenticity, consumer culture and the circulation of images. Ethridge participated in the Whitney Biennial (2008) and MoMA’s New Photography exhibition (2010). His work is included in major institutional collections, including MoMA, New York.

Hans-Peter Feldmann (b. 1941, Hilden, Germany. Died 2023, Düsseldorf, Germany) was an influential German conceptual artist whose practice centred on photography, found imagery and everyday objects. Through collecting, repetition and humour, he questioned artistic originality and explored the relationship between images, memory and popular culture. Feldmann received the Hugo Boss Prize in 2010, followed by a major exhibition at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York in 2011. His photographic series and artist books remain significant contributions to European conceptual art.

Gideon Kiefer (b. 1970, Neerpelt, Belgium. Lives and works in Sint-Martens-Latem, Belgium.) creates drawings and paintings that explore memory, history and the fragile boundaries between reality and fiction. Combining personal recollections with imaginary narratives, his atmospheric compositions frequently address environmental and societal concerns. His work has been presented in solo exhibitions at Be-Part and BARBÉ. In 2025, he was nominated for the Prix de Dessin of the Fondation Daniel & Florence Guerlain. His work is included in collections such as Museum Voorlinden and Museum Dr. Guislain.

Nicolás Lamas (b. 1980, Lima, Peru. Lives and works in Brussels, Belgium) creates sculptures and installations that bring together natural materials, industrial objects and technological elements. His practice investigates the relationships between matter, archaeology, science and systems of knowledge, allowing familiar objects to acquire unexpected meanings. His work has been exhibited internationally at institutions including S.M.A.K., mumok Vienna and the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw. In 2026, he presents Corpus Serialis at Ca’ Pesaro in Venice.

Sofie Middernacht (b. 1985, Belgium. Lives in Ghent, works in Aalst, Belgium) interdisciplinary practice combines photography, sculpture and installation, exploring intimacy, voyeurism, identity and perception. Her work frequently challenges the conventional boundaries of photography through sculptural interventions. The duo was nominated for the Foam Paul Huf Award in 2017 and has exhibited at Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens, Art Rotterdam and BARBÉ.

Joost Pauwaert (b. 1985, Bretzenheim, Germany. Lives and works in Wilrijk, Belgium) creates monumental sculptures and performances that explore power, beauty and the poetic potential of mechanical objects. Combining technical precision with humour and symbolism, his work frequently references machinery, military structures and human systems of control. His exhibitions include The End Is Near at BARBÉ (2024), featuring the performance Apocalyptic Triumph Parade. His work has also been presented at C-MINE and ABBY Kortrijk and is represented in the collection of the Museum van Deinze en de Leiestreek.

Matt Saunders (b.1975, Tacoma, USA. Lives and works between New York, Cambridge and Berlin) works across painting, photography, printmaking and film, developing experimental processes in which painted surfaces become photographic negatives. His practice explores time, memory, cinema and the physical nature of images. Saunders has exhibited at the Renaissance Society in Chicago, Tate Liverpool and Marian Goodman Gallery. He received the Prix Jean-François Prat (2013) and the Rappaport Prize (2015). His work is included in the collections of MoMA, the Guggenheim Museum and SFMOMA.

Thomas Vandenberghe (b.1985, Ghent, Belgium. Based in Belgium) creates intimate, often raw analogue photographs that explore personal relationships, desire, love and loss. His small-scale silver gelatin prints are frequently manipulated, repeated or physically altered, emphasising the tactile and emotional qualities of photography. His work has been exhibited at FOMU Antwerp, the Musée de la Photographie in Brussels and Unseen Amsterdam. His publication Sorry Would Have Saved Me the Trip reflects his deeply personal and experimental approach to the photographic medium.

Sybren Vanoverberghe (b. 1996, Kortrijk, Belgium. Lives and works in Belgium) works with photography, installation and found objects to investigate how landscapes preserve traces of history, culture and human activity. By documenting historical sites and contemporary environments, he creates visual narratives in which past, present and future intersect. His work has been exhibited at FOMU, De Brakke Grond and Contretype. He has published several artist books with Art Paper Editions, including 2099 (2018), Conference of the Birds (2019) and MUSA (2024). His work is included in the collection of the Flemish Community.

Thu Van Tran (b. 1979, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Lives and works in Paris, France.) is a French-Vietnamese artist working across painting, sculpture, photography and installation. Her practice examines colonial history, migration, memory and the political significance of materials and colour. Her work frequently addresses Vietnam’s colonial past and the exploitation of natural resources. She participated in the Venice Biennale (2017) and was nominated for the Prix Marcel Duchamp (2018). Her work has been presented at MAMAC Nice, the Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection and the Carnegie Museum of Art.

Anna Vogel (b. 1981, Herdecke, Germany. Lives and works between Tyrol, Austria, and Düsseldorf, Germany) explores the boundaries of photography by combining photographic images with drawing, scratching, airbrushing and other physical interventions. Her work investigates the tension between digital image-making and manual processes, questioning how images shape our perception of reality. She studied at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf under Thomas Ruff, Christopher Williams and Andreas Gursky. Vogel received the Düsseldorf Förderpreis (2012) and the Zonta Award (2018), and has exhibited at Deweer Gallery, Keteleer Gallery and Sperling Munich.