Marie-Jo Lafontaine

Marie-Jo Lafontaine studied at École nationale supérieure des arts visuels de La Cambre. The recorded working language is French. The field of work recorded is visual arts, photography and videography. Work by Marie-Jo Lafontaine is recorded in the collections of Städel Museum, Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst, Mu.ZEE - Kunstmuseum aan Zee, Museum Arnhem and Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium. Distinctions recorded are Wilhelm Loth Award.

• Name — Marie-Jo Lafontaine • Born — 17 November 1950 • Birthplace — Antwerp, Belgium • Died — 28 May 2026 • Education — La Cambre • Awards — Wilhelm-Loth-Preis (1995) European Photography Award (1996)

Lafontaine was from Antwerp (Anvers), Belgium. She studied from 1975 to 1979 at l'École nationale supérieure d'architecture et des arts visuels. She worked in many media including "tapestries" in which she weaved black-dyed wool into linear patterns; sculptural work using plaster, concrete, and lead; and photography. In 1980, Lafontaine started using video in her sculptures and created installations and environments utilizing video. Lafontaine was awarded the Prix de la Jeune Peinture Belge in 1977. She also received a FIACRE grant from the French Ministry of Culture in 1986, and in 1996 the European Photography Award. Critic Konstanze Thümmel describes the dominating themes in her post-1980s video work as "association between Eros and Thanatos, passion and reason," and that Lafontaine explores these "...through powerful images of people and animals in extreme situations." In 2006 she was chosen as an artist for the Sky Arena Project and her video “I Love the World” was screened at the opening ceremony of the FIFA World Cup in Frankfurt, Germany. • Illustration — Partial View of Les larmes d'acier She is best known for her work Les larmes d'acier (1986). Lafontaine died on 28 May 2026, at the age of 75.

Marie-Jo Lafontaine is recorded as university teacher, photographer, television producer and artist. Lafontaine, Marie-Jo, Oxford Art Online, 2003. Lafontaine, Marie-Jo, Benezit Dictionary of Artists, 2011.