“Continuing to marvel at oneself is an important theme in the work of Willem Boronski. He once began painting still lifes because he thought being an artist meant you had to create as accurate a representation of reality as possible. Over time, his work underwent a clear development, and he discovered that art had a completely different value for him. It was precisely not about mimicking reality as closely as possible, but about presenting his own reality to the viewer through his art.

Currently, the exhibition “Hyperrealism Sculpture” is on display at the Kunsthal in Rotterdam. In this exhibition, the art lies in distinguishing the exhibited works from ‘real’ people. This even goes so far that a hyperrealistic image of a ‘visitor’ was mistaken for an actual visitor multiple times by other visitors. That was until they realized that this girl was standing still in the same spot for a very long time. It turns out to be a statue by Daniel Firman: Caroline.

The value that art holds for Boronski is, in a certain sense, very different from what is presented in the exhibition Hyperrealism Sculpture. He does not mimic reality in his work. On the other hand, for Boronski, creating a new reality means stimulating a relationship between the viewer and the artwork. The viewer develops emotions upon seeing a work, and these emotions are constantly in motion. In this way, a viewer continues to marvel at the artwork and does not take anything for granted. The funny thing is that the same happens with Firman’s hyperrealistic girl. The viewer wonders and asks: is she really a flesh-and-blood girl, or is she part of the exhibition?

Boronski stimulates new ways of seeing with his abstract art. He sees this as a counter to ‘putting things in boxes’ and accepting something without questioning it. The message that speaks from his work is: let go of all prejudices and rational considerations and always continue to marvel at yourself.”