“Abstract Coastal Lines” explores the influence of the Belgian coast on post-war abstract artists. For some, the sea was a constant source of inspiration; for others, the coast was their home. This exhibition brings together works by Luc Peire, Gilbert Decock, Marcel-Henri Verdren, Gilbert Swimberghe, Ferdinand Vonck and Maurice Boel, artists whose work was enriched by their proximity to the North Sea.
Luc Peire, who often stayed in Knokke, is renowned for his verticalism, with paintings that reflect the infinite space of the horizon and the coastline. Gilbert Decock, a lifelong resident of Knokke, translated the "geometric sculptures" of his friend Ferdinand Vonck into painting. Decock’s mature work employs circles and squares to express the tension between the infinite and the finite. The gallery presents a sublime example of this transformation from sculpture to painting with an early canvas from 1960.
Marcel-Henri Verdren, from Ostend, was fascinated by capturing light and experimenting with prisms, using abstract forms reminiscent of the reflections and movement of the sea. Gilbert Swimberghe translated the rhythms of the sea into abstracted seascapes in 1959. Ferdinand Vonck, born in Blankenberge, was a key influence on both Peire and Decock, and his minimalist sculptures served as an inspiration for Decock’s early paintings.
Maurice Boel, also from Ostend, was inspired by the coastal landscape in his lyrical abstractions, where the sea often appeared as a subtle undercurrent in his compositions.
The exhibition also includes a special insert featuring James Ensor and Léon Spilliaert, artists who explored the boundary between figuration and abstraction, with the sea as a major source of inspiration.
“Abstract Coastal Lines” reveals how the Belgian coast served both as a home and a muse for this generation of artists, shaping their work at the intersection of abstraction and figuration.
Artists: Maurice Boel, Luc Peire, Gilbert Decock, Gilbert Swimberghe, Leon Spilliaert, James Ensor, Ferdinand Vonck, Marcel-Henri Verdren
