PLAYFULL SURREALISM The moment Stef Rymenants could hold a pencil he started drawing monsters, cars and beasts. After attending “Sierkunsten” in Antwerp he studied Graphic Design at the KASK in Ghent. For years he worked as an art and creative director in advertising but he always knew that drawing and painting was his real passion. Five years ago Stef had a “now or never” moment and chose to become a fulltime artist. Fortunately he has a head full of imagination and his work has always a playful and absurd twist. The subtile humor of the Belgian Surrealists is always near. His human figures and animals are puzzles made of black rimmed geometrical forms. They make you think of stained glass or the sleek shapes of Art Deco. The antique Greek and Roman worlds are also an inexhaustible source of inspiration for this artist. Rymenants makes drawings with black pencil on paper then colors them digitally. “Everything around me can lead to inspiration. A magazine, an old man on the street with a dog, a girl on a bicycle, birds in the garden or a cat in front of a window. I always carry a sketchbook with me to capture my ideas when inspiration strikes. If I really can’t concentrate, I walk to the city for a coffee. Watching and drawing people can really boost my creativity. And if that doesn’t help, I take a small nap.”