Jakob Oksbjerg | Feeling from Afar
Bricks Gallery is pleased to present Feeling from Afar, a solo exhibition by Jakob Oksbjerg, with an opening reception on April 25 from 5-8 PM. This marks Oksbjerg’s third solo show with the gallery and features a new series of pigment paintings on viscose, each presented in a custom-built frame.
Feeling from Afar explores the connection between telepathy and empathy - two forms of emotional communication that rely not on words, but on sensitivity and presence. Through his distinct visual language, Oksbjerg questions how emotions, moods, and images are shared, received, and understood beyond language.
Rooted in an interest in perception beyond the visible, Oksbjerg’s work examines how we sense and respond to one another in ways that fall outside of conventional understanding. Telepathy is not presented as a far-off, speculative idea, but rather as a natural extension of empathy - a subtle form of emotional transmission that may already be deeply embedded in our everyday lives. The exhibition asks: where does empathy end and telepathy begin?
These ideas take shape through recurring symbols and soft, fluid compositions. Hands extend toward one another - not to grasp, but to sense. Water moves between forms, suggesting the shifting nature of emotion and its silent exchange. The pineal gland, delicately positioned atop human heads, appears as a reference to inner vision - a symbol of perception that reaches beyond the physical. Together, these motifs create a personal symbolic system - not one that explains, but one that invites the viewer to feel their way through the work.
The sense of openness is also reflected in Oksbjerg’s technique. Working primarily with water-based pigments mixed with glue binder, he lets the paint move freely across the canvas. Forms soften, boundaries dissolve, and the surface becomes a space for emotion to unfold intuitively - much like the unspoken understanding between people.
Text by Amanda Dam
Jakob Oksbjerg (b. 1985) is a self-taught artist based in Faxe, Denmark. He began his career in 2019 with a debut exhibition at Den Frie Udstillingsbygning in Copenhagen. Recent exhibitions include ’Something to Believe’ at Bricks Gallery (2024), ’Koloristerne’ at Den Frie (2023) and ’Round Two’ at Gisselfeld Kloster (2023).
