This painter’s take on age, beauty, and changing norms

At Arts to Hearts Project, we had the chance to speak with Brussels-based painter Isabella Theys about the questions driving her work—age, beauty, and the social rules that often go unquestioned. After starting in fashion and later building a career in HR, Isabella returned to painting in 2017, bringing with her a keen eye for how society shapes appearances and expectations.

In this conversation, she opens up about moving away from flawless ideals, confronting the marks of time, and finding intrigue in the shifting lines between what we call “beautiful” and “ugly.” She describes her figures as characters that arrive with their own voice but soon carry echoes of broader cultural struggles. Isabella also shares how she uses humour and tension in her paintings—not to soften critique, but to make space for new ways of seeing.

Through her stories of residencies, exhibitions, and collaborations, we see how her work evolves across various contexts and communities. This interview, featured on the Arts to Hearts Project website, offers a closer look at how Isabella utilises painting as a means to challenge conventions and capture the contradictions shaping today’s society.

Isabella Theys is a featured artist in our book, “100 Emerging Artists 2025” You can explore her journey and the stories of other artists by purchasing the book here:

https://shop.artstoheartsproject.com/products/the-creative-process-book

Isabella Theys (°1974, Brussels) After a successful career as an HR Manager across various industries, I reignited my passion for art in late 2017. My journey really began with fashion studies at the Royal Academy of Antwerp in my twenties, setting the stage for a compelling return to the art world. My oil paintings aim to respond to the ageist metaphors and superficial beauty standards prevalent in our society. I paint figures that challenge these norms, questioning ageism, the pursuit of impeccable appearance, and stereotypical gender roles. With a subtle humour, I wish to reshape social conventions surrounding the cult of youth.

1.    Your paintings often bring forward figures and themes that society tends to keep in the shadows. What first drew you to exploring what is unseen or silenced?  

When I returned to the art world after a pause of over 20 years, I quickly realised I was still stuck in the beauty standards and flawless images I was so used to in my twenties. Still, I had aged quite a bit, with the first wrinkles showing, and I strongly felt I had to catch up with the reality of what I saw in the mirror when translating my world onto canvas. I got more and more intrigued by aesthetics and what we call ‘ugly’ and how these two definitions alter with age, with trends and with cultural bias. I was drawn to these edges because that’s where transformation happens.

2.    You describe your work as subversive fairytales, where humour softens but also sharpens the critique. How do you balance playfulness with the weight of social conventions you are challenging?  

Balancing playfulness with the weight of challenging social conventions is a delicate act; it’s about using lightness not to dismiss seriousness, but to open space for deeper engagement. The goal isn’t to trivialise the convention, but to question its necessity or reveal its contradictions. Think of it like satire: the best satire doesn’t mock for the sake of it, it exposes the absurdity of things we’ve accepted as usual.

3.     Many of your figures question expectations around age, beauty, and gender. When you’re working on these characters, do they come to you as individuals with their own voice, or more as symbols of larger struggles?  

They come to me as individuals first, each with their own presence, posture, and emotional weight, but they carry echoes of many others. As the painting evolves, they begin to carry more than themselves. They become vessels, holding not only personal narratives, but also collective ones.

I got more and more intrigued by aesthetics and what we call ‘ugly’ and how these two definitions alter with age, with trends and with cultural bias.

Isabella Theys

4.   You’ve spoken about creating a “tipping point” in your images—where rebellion or collapse feels imminent. What does that tension mean to you in relation to today’s society?  

The figures in my work, caught in moments of tension, are like the cultural undercurrents that are at play in today’s society. I see this tipping point not just as a visual motif, but as a cultural pulse, as if society is at a crossroads. We’re living through moments where old norms might be crumbling, but there’s always a fight to hold on to them.

Balancing playfulness with the weight of challenging social conventions is a delicate act, it’s about using lightness not to dismiss seriousness, but to open space for deeper engagement.

Isabella Theys

5.    Your recent exhibitions range from intimate local spaces to international residencies. How do different contexts and audiences influence the way your work is received—or the way you create it? 

Both settings have unique dynamics and different energies that I have to engage with. The kind of environment, local or international, pushes me to evolve the work. I spoke about transformation earlier, and that’s a significant part of what drives me – a longing to grow and transform, to improve at what I do. I feel compelled to expand the conversation, to dig deeper into universal themes, while also honouring the specific context in which I’m working.

6.     You’ve contributed to fanzines, residencies, solo and group exhibitions. Looking across these experiences, what role do collaboration and community play in your practice? 

Collaboration and community have always been integral to my practice, sometimes in ways I didn’t fully understand at the time, but looking back, I see how deeply those connections shape the work. Each experience, whether it’s contributing to a fanzine, participating in a residency, or taking part in a group exhibition, brings a different energy and challenge. Still, all of it ultimately feeds into a larger sense of collective growth.

Isabella Theys’ paintings speak to the pressures of age, beauty, and gender, pulling forward what is often pushed aside or left unsaid. Her work prompts us to examine why certain ideals are upheld and what it means to stand at the threshold of change.

Through humour, tension, and carefully drawn characters, she creates spaces where the contradictions of society come into focus. From her return to painting after a two-decade hiatus to her experiences across residencies and exhibitions, Isabella’s journey demonstrates how art can challenge norms, spark dialogue, and remind us that transformation often begins at the margins.

To learn more about Isabella, click the following links to visit her profile.

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