Ars Belga presents a dialogue between Charles Pollock (1902–1988) and Piero Dorazio (1927–2005), two pivotal figures in the development of post-war abstraction whose practices converged around a shared fascination with colour, light and the possibilities of the painted surface.

An American pioneer of lyrical abstraction, Charles Pollock gradually moved away from the restrained geometry of his early work towards increasingly open, atmospheric compositions in which colour becomes expansive and almost weightless. His encounter with Rome in 1962 marked a decisive moment in this evolution, giving rise to his celebrated Rome Series.

Piero Dorazio, a leading figure of Italian abstraction, pursued a fundamentally different yet equally radical approach. Through his interwoven lines, luminous colour and vibrating structures, he transformed the surface of the canvas into a dynamic field of light and movement.

The two artists met in Rome in 1962, establishing a friendship and artistic exchange that connected the American and European avant-gardes. Bringing their work together today reveals the unexpected affinities between two distinct visual languages and the exploration of colour to redefine space and perception.