René Heyvaert
(c)image: M HKA/CC
René Heyvaert was restricted throughout his adult life by a digestive disease acquired in the Congo. The illness caused him bodily complaints, but also brought on an inner unrest, no doubt reinforced by his philosophizing, reflective mind. For Heyvaert, art was a way of escaping from his physical and mental problems. Using abstract geometric forms and pattern in different colors, he made a host of drawings and collage-like paper constructions and assemblages. Heyvaert found some calm in his slow and precise approach to the making of these sober, ‘modest’ works. These works demonstrate the meditative side of Heyvaert’s art: in this case, his handling of the motif is more important than the resulting work.