In his work as a tattoo artist, Bob Geerts has spent years in close contact with the human body. Each one different, each one marked by its own story. For Geerts, the body is more than form, it’s memory, vulnerability, and resilience. The skin, often trusted to him as canvas, becomes a site of silent conversation, a place where old narratives meet new ones, written for their lifetime.

This new series, titled When It All Hangs In The Air, takes its cue from the phrase “keep all the balls in the air.” A metaphor for the juggling act of modern life, it captures the tension between outer tranquility and inner chaos. We perform stability while quietly battling overwhelm. Geerts’ figures embody that tension, simultaneously fragile and strong, always on the edge of collapse, yet somehow still standing.

The works also carry personal weight. This past summer, Geerts found himself overwhelmed by the very abundance he cherishes: creative ambition, multiple projects, and the looming reality of becoming a father. The joy was real, but so was the pressure. This emotional layering seeps into the paintings, making them not just representations, but confessions.