Both creative and destructive, vital and deadly, fire has captivated humanity since the dawn of time. It flickers in myth and ritual, warms the domestic sphere, and devastates in moments of violence. Fire, the new exhibition at the Boghossian Foundation’s Villa Empain, brings together nearly one hundred works spanning over six decades to explore the element’s many symbolisms. From cosmic light to domestic flame, from ritual to destruction, the show invites visitors into a dialogue across cultures and media. In this interview, Louma Salamé (L.S.), director of the Boghossian Foundation and curator of the exhibition, reflects on fire’s enduring presence in art and imagination.
Among the other three elements, why fire?
L.S: Fire is, by nature, deeply ambivalent – at once creative and destructive. It’s a substance we associate both with emptiness and with fullness, with life and with death. This duality has fascinated humankind, and artists in particular, since the dawn of time. It is an element that encompasses many dimensions: the violent and untamed fire, of course, but also the mastered fire, the one that lights our nights, cooks our food, and warms us. And beyond that, the exhibition also touches on the spiritual and immaterial dimensions of fire.
Fire persists as a collective symbol. What do you think makes it such an enduring subject for artistic exploration?
L.S: If you ask, What is fire?, there are countless answers, as varied as its forms, colours, and states. From medieval fire festivals in Europe to those still celebrated in India, or even Burning Man in the United States, fire has always been central to communities and societies. Even the poet Jean Cocteau once said: “If my house were to burn, what would I take with me? I would wish to take the fire itself…”
With Fire, which brings together around a hundred works spanning more than 65 years, we invite the public to explore these different symbolisms and universal representations. The exhibition creates a dialogue between modern and contemporary artists across many media, from painting and sculpture to installation, photography, video, drawing, tapestry, and performance.
The exhibition spans artists from diverse contexts. With this exhibition showcasing the works of 50 artists, in what ways do their cultural perspectives on fire converge or diverge within the exhibition narrative?
L.S: Some artists turn to the cosmic: the sun, the moon, volcanoes, stars, exploring their universal symbolism and manifestations. For instance, Japanese artist Michiko van de Velde created a monumental work that represents dawn. Others approach fire through the ordinary and the familiar. Raymond Hains, for instance, transforms a simple matchbox into something new. There are also works that reflect on humanity’s fragility in the face of flames such as Bill Viola’s video Martyr (Fire) or Franco-Chinese painter Xie Lei’s canvas Expose.
Several artists also confront the violent fires of war, whether chemical or nuclear. Vietnamese artist Thu Van Tran, with From Green to Orange, refers to the defoliants dropped during the Vietnam War, while Lebanese artist Ali Cherri presents works like Je ne suis pas pyromane and Immolation Kit. And of course, ceramics – fire’s art form par excellence – is represented in a remarkable in-situ installation by Korean artist Jiania Kim, who fills the Grand Hall of the Villa Empain with thousands of fiery red leaves swirling in space.
Beyond its visual presence, fire carries ritualistic and communal significance. How did these non-visual associations influence the curatorial choices?
L.S: We wanted to evoke those shared experiences, torchlight processions, gatherings around a fire, which appear, for example, in a drawing by Belgian artist Rémy Hans. But the exhibition also includes works created with fire. From the 1960s onward, artists associated with Arte Povera in Italy, the Nouveaux Réalistes in France, or the Zero Group in Germany began experimenting with immaterial materials: wind, rain, light, and soon after, fire, smoke, and soot, incorporated into their canvases and works.
Fire presents these historical explorations, through pieces made with blowtorches or even flamethrowers by Arman, Yves Klein, Piero Manzoni, Alberto Burri, or Jannis Kounellis. We are showing a work by Kounellis – one of Arte Povera’s leading figures – for which we literally lit a fire at the Boghossian Foundation. It is both a metaphor for artistic creation and a reflection on the sacred rituals of fire, as well as the eternal myth of the phoenix.
Location: Boghossian Foundation, Brussels, Belgium.
Date: 25 September 2025 until 1 March 2026.