Chasing Circles

Chasing Circles is an ongoing series in which the circle becomes a linking element or a deliberate addition. Hoedt reimagines seemingly imperfect scenes, turning them into vibrant compositions that reveal the beauty hidden in the ordinary.

Lieselot Hoedt looks at the world around her with a sharp and attentive eye. She uncovers poetry in the banal — in what is often overlooked or dismissed as messy. In streets, gardens, interiors, urban environments, and private homes, she reframes traces of both human and natural presence. These observations are translated into images where reality and abstraction subtly merge.

Her work moves between reality and abstraction, between documentary and staging. Reality is the point of departure, yet through a strong sense of composition, color, and rhythm — and a playful inclination toward the absurd — meaning begins to shift. Seemingly ordinary objects acquire a sculptural quality, as if consciously arranging themselves within the space.

Rather than subtracting, Hoedt deliberately chooses to add. A recurring element in her work is the circle — a form that has fascinated her since childhood, both in natural patterns and in man-made objects. This fascination first took shape in Curls & Dots, her first digital mood board. The title referred both to her pinned-up hair and to her love of circular forms.

These (colored) circles — often added using stickers, oil pastel, or other materials — appear as playful, seemingly casual “dots.” At first glance, they may feel almost je m’en fous, lighthearted and freely placed. On closer inspection, however, they reveal themselves as deliberate accents that introduce rhythm, balance, and tension into the image. They strengthen the composition and bring chromatic dynamism without disturbing its harmony.

The circle does not only suggest movement and infinity; it also opens space for interpretation. It introduces a sense of freedom and possibility while reinforcing the coherence of the whole.

For this series, Hoedt works with the three primary colors: red, yellow, and blue. They are not merely aesthetic choices, but active agents within the composition. Their vivid presence draws the eye and generates a dynamic interplay between freedom and structure, order and chance, tension and simplicity. The colors both constrain and liberate, connecting the image to a universal visual language.

Hoedt’s work radiates a colorful simplicity. She offers a renewed perspective on the chaos of everyday life — not by reducing it, but by adding accents. The circles, colors, and subtle interventions create a form of visual escapism without escaping reality. Her work is a reminder of the pleasure of looking, the value of attention, and the beauty found in small things.

Hoedt selects three images from this series. Seemingly simple scenes — a blue container with a wrapped scooter, a staircase marked by a red thread, and a lemon crushed between a chair — are framed as if they were intentional sculptures. In doing so, she connects the perspective of her own surroundings with that of other places, searching for a universal visual language in which freedom and composition meet.