Gaston Relens (Mechelen, 9 March 1909 – Schaarbeek, 4 June 2011) was a Belgian

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

working in Schaarbeek. He was taught by

Gustave van de Woestijne Gustave Van de Woestijne (; 2 August 1881 – 21 April 1947) was a Belgian expressionist painter. He belonged to the so-called "First Group of Latem", a group of artists who worked in the rural village of Sint-Martens-Latem on the banks of ...

at the Academy of Fine Arts in Mechelen (1930–1935) and later on by

Anto Carte Antoine "Anto" Carte (8 December 1886 - 15 February 1954) was a Belgian painter. Antoine Carto was born in Mons in 1886. His father was a joiner. Anto Carte was first apprenticed to François Depooter, an interior painter, and then studied art ...

at the Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels.

Biography

''Gaston Relens'' was raised in Hofstade by his beloved

stepparents A stepfamily (sometimes called a bonus family) is a family where at least one parent has children who are not biologically related to their spouse. Either parent, or both, may have children from previous relationships or marriages. Two known cl ...

, “father Fons” Van Erp and “mother Lies” Trouwkens. Originally he was trained to become a

brazier A brazier () is a container used to burn charcoal or other solid fuel for cooking, heating or rituals. It often takes the form of a metal box or bowl with feet, but in some places it is made of terracotta. Its elevation helps circulate air, feed ...

. But he enrolled for the evening classes drawing and painting at the Academy of Mechelen. Later on he continued at the

Academy of Brussels An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

. In 1937 he obtained the first prize for painting

summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

and the golden medal of the

Belgian government The Federal Government of Belgium ( ; ; ) exercises executive power in the Kingdom of Belgium. It consists of ministers and secretaries of state ("junior", or deputy-ministers who do not sit in the Council of Ministers) drawn from the polit ...

for his painting “The Battle at Woeringen”. During the war he was obliged to find a job to make a living and stopped painting until 1957. His interest in painting however did not fall, and he continued visiting numerous exhibitions. At that time he worked in the local administration of Hofstade . Sometime later he was engaged as technical draughtsman by Eternit in Kapelle-op-den-Bos. In 1947 he married Andrée Dongrie and they settled in Schaarbeek. He also did some work at the

Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...

. From 1979 onwards he often retreated to the calm of his farmhouse in Ogy to do his painting. He was very sensitive to the joys and sorrows of his fellow human beings, which helps to explain his choice of topics: the farm labour, the loneliness of the blind man in the big city, the dangers and threats of

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

, the ups and downs of social life, the lost

paradise In religion and folklore, paradise is a place of everlasting happiness, delight, and bliss. Paradisiacal notions are often laden with pastoral imagery, and may be cosmogonical, eschatological, or both, often contrasted with the miseries of human ...

, the unchanging rhythm of the seasons. At first he was influenced by expressionism, but very soon there was an evolution towards magic realism and symbolism, which delight us by the magnificent display of colour and the subtle harmony. The rich and delicate range of colouring transcends reality and turns into poetry. Numerous exhibitions have been held, especially in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

Mechelen Mechelen (; ; historically known as ''Mechlin'' in EnglishMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical context. T ...

, Lier,

Genève Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the capital of the Republic and Ca ...

, Villeneuve d’Ascq and

Leiden Leiden ( ; ; in English language, English and Archaism, archaic Dutch language, Dutch also Leyden) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Nethe ...

. Two important retrospectives have taken place, in Mechelen, at the Cultureel Centrum Antoon Spinoy, from 6 October till 4 November 1990, and at the town hall of Schaarbeek, from 6 till 30 April 1991. Gaston Relens lived in Rue de la Ruche / Bijenkorfstraat 43 in Schaarbeek.

Bibliography

* André Dussart, ''Relens'', Schoonaarde, 1976 * Nicole Verschoore, avant-propos de Paul Caso, ''Relens'', Bruxelles : L. de Meyer, 1980 * Jacques Collard, ''Gaston Relens, Sur l'aile de la fantaisie'', in: ''50 artistes de Belgique II'', Bruxelles, 1986 * Alfons De Bleser, introduction by Remy De Cnodder, ''Gaston Relens'', Sint-Niklaas, 1990 * Raymond Lacroix, René Turkry et André Dussart, ''Gaston Relens'', Gemeente Schaarbeek, retrospective from 6th till 30 April 1991 * Raymond Lacroix, Wim Toebosch, ''Gaston Relens'', Bruxelles : Mercenart, Art poche, 1996 * Joost De Geest, ''Relens'', Bruxelles : Ars Libris, L. De Meyer-Nicolas Poncelet, 1997

External links

Dictionnaire des peintres belges
{{DEFAULTSORT:Relens, Gaston Belgian painters 1909 births Painters from Mechelen 2011 deaths