After 'WOORD', this is the second exhibition on language in the arts. Featuring the abstract work of Gaston De Mey and the intriguing objects of Wim Nival, this exhibition focuses on the use of letters as core elements in the creative proces.

Coppejans Gallery represents the estate of Gaston De Mey (1933-2015), an artist of the second generation of geometric abstracts in Belgium. From 1968 De Mey made a radical choice that raises the level of abstraction of his work to a higher level than ever before. For the first time he used letters as purely abstract elements. Without any substantive link, the characters of the alphabet are used in his paintings to create geometric compositions.

For Gaston De Mey, letters are elementary particles in his oeuvre that only serve to form a completely abstract composition. He distinguishes himself from his peers by working with existing and recognizable symbols from our daily lives, but at the same time also from visual poets and the writers of concrete poetry. After all, for them, letters are still substantive elements that should give meaning to an image or message.

Wim Nival (1968) lives and works in Ghent. He creates small aesthetic objects with used materials and using careful craft techniques. The works of art he creates are almost never much bigger than our palms. They have a kind of geometric imagery that is linked to archiving and construction.

Artists: Gaston De Mey, Wim Nival