Jacques Lizene

(Ougrée, Belgium, 1946 – Liège, Belgium, 2021)

Belgian visual artist, photographer, videographer and singer. He was one of the most prolific members of the Liège artist collective CAP (Cercle d' Art Prospectif) along with Pierre Courtois, Jacques Lennep, Jacques-Louis Nyst and Jean-Pierre Ransonnet. Lizène defined her work as “products from a stupid art institute”: being “easy”, “unimportant” or even “ridiculous”. He criticized many things, but especially he spoke out against the values of the art world elite. Through his work he tried to laugh at that “serious” speech and style, considering it a presumptuous and empty speech, defining himself as “a little master from Liège from the middle of the 20th century.”

He participated in Medialab Madrid through the project: “The creation of the Balkan War: the game”, an interactive virtual installation by the Personal Cinema collective (Greece). This exhibition (from February 11 to March 14, 2004) used the formal characteristics of an epic adventure video game to propose a critical reflection on the different patterns of thought and behavior that take place at the level of geopolitics and everyday life. . The exhibition space was transformed into a virtual and interactive scenario where the visitor became a participant and player immersed in the Balkan conflict zone. The objective of the project was to propose an open space for action and communication on the religious, social and political conflicts that persist in the Balkans.