Teaching the blind to see

That same year, a group of Antwerp abstract artists join forces to defend their art against – in their view – the dominance and rigidness of figurative painting. And so G58 is born.

The rather rapid social-economic recovery immediately after the Second World War, also known as “the Belgian miracle”, stagnates in the 1950s. Although most commonly typified as a stale period, a new age lurks on the horizon, an age of mass consumption and space discovery. These changes in the industry and society at large demand a new form of art, G58 thinks. All too often, the cultural establishment prefers old wine in even older bottles.

Abstract vs figurative

With economic renewal comes a general cultural rejuvenation. Rock’n’roll and cinema targeted at post-war teens put youth at the centre of popular culture. With the exportation of these products of mass entertainment, the US attains a dominant position in the western world. New York has become the centre of the international art scene, with a mix of locals and European exiles who have fled their native countries after the Nazi rise to power.

Partially building on the accomplishments of the various historical avant-gardes in the first decades of the 20th century, American abstract expressionism takes on a major role. Artists like Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko and Willem de Kooning come to the fore and make abstract art the most dominant art form of the time.

In Flanders, artists who seek new ways to reflect on the changing world also experiment with non-figurative representation. Abstract art, however, doesn’t seem to fall on fertile ground here. Flemish Expressionism, with exemplary artists such as Constant Permeke, Frits Van den Berghe and Gustaaf De Smet, continues to rule the local art scene. The majority of museums and galleries show little interest in the abstract.

Animated discussions on the matter place artists, critics and art professionals in two opposing camps. Between them is a river of misunderstanding and, sometimes, contempt. Defenders of figurative representation see abstract art as an unintelligible platitude, the downfall of a masterful craft or – at best – an intermediate step towards a new art form. Apostles of the abstract arts, meanwhile, refute figurative painting as hopelessly old-fashioned, incapable of depicting the developments and sensitivities of the modern world.

In the middle of the fray, the members of G58 strive for opportunities to expose their work. With the support of then-mayor Lode Craeybeckx, the group finds a home: an enormous attic in Hessenhuis, one of the oldest port buildings in Antwerp. From 1958 until the group disbands in 1962, a vast number of activities take place here.

No success but who cares?

Antwerp's museum of contemporary art, M HKA, is paying homage to G58, which was crucial in fuelling interest in abstract art in Belgium. Divided into five chapters, New Art in Antwerp 1958-1962 revisits the works and the context in which they were exhibited.

The opening chapter earlier this year focused on the founding myth of G58. It looked back on how the group managed to get a hold of their 1,000 square metre-plus space and organise their inaugural expo.

This second instalment, called “Must we teach the blind to see?”, explores the first generation of Belgian abstract artists. Although post-war abstract artists often travelled different paths than their local colleagues had done 30 years earlier, they wanted to dispense with the unjust neglect of their predecessors. That this “historical correction” also gave legitimacy to their own battle for abstract art was, of course, a nice bonus.

Among the selection are pieces by Felix De Boeck, Georges Vantongerloo, Paul Joostens and Victor Servranckx, all of whom gained an undisputable renown over the years. A video interview with the daughter of Jozef Peeters makes clear that this renown is not self-evident. “My father never had any success,” she says, “but he didn’t care.” She talks passionately about her father’s works, while guiding us through his apartment, designed entirely according to his artistic vision.

A good portion of the works show a preoccupation with movement, industry and technique, obviously so in the paintings by Hubert Wolf and Karel Maes, who were both inspired by trains.

At the end of 1963, a year after the artists of G58 went their separate ways, an ambitious exhibition in the Hessenhuis put Flemish abstract art on a pedestal, and the accompanying book told the history of this art branch from its origins. The art world had officially embraced abstract art.

Until 13 May

New Art in Antwerp 1958-1962

M HKA, Leuvenstraat 32, Antwerp
www.muhka.be