Paul Van Hoeydonck (Belgian b. 1925)
Van Hoeydonck graduated in History of Art and Archaeology in his hometown, Antwerp. Rooted in the period of Pop-Art, Op-art and Nouveau Realisme, he managed to devise a completely new oeuvre with his Space-Art. Throughout his career, Van Hoeydonck stood aside dominating styles and movements and in over 50 years of activity the concern of manhood and its interaction with the space it occupies had been central to his work. Van Hoeydonck's works during the 1950s were initially canvases with vibrant and colourful geometric forms that soon gained three-dimensionality, with monochromatic collages and relieves substituting the flat, colourful shapes.
As a reaction to criticism of his monochromatic works, he produced a series called Boa monocles, where boxes which were meant for precious objects were filled with spectacle glasses - a provocative and humoured way of pointing to people how blind they were. In 1971, in cooperation with the Wadell Gallery in New York, a sculpture made by Van Hoeydonck was taken by the Apollo 15 crew and placed on the moon.
Van Hoeydonck was commissioned a number of monumental works including a Robot sculpture for Parque de las Naciones, Madrid and in 1991 a large Robot by Massive International on the highway between Paris and Lille.
Whitford Fine Art is the leading gallery in the UK to represent the work by Paul Van Hoeydonck. In 1990 the gallery held a one-man show titled Paintings and Collages 1955 - 1959 in which it exhibited the artist's works from the Fifties.
Public collections include
Galleria Comunale d'Arte Moderna, Rome
Israel Museum, Jerusalem
Koninklijk Museum, Antwerp
Musée d'Art et d'Industrie, St Etienne
Museum of Modern Art, New York
Stedelijk Museum, Ostende
Stedelijk Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven
Stuyvesant Art Collection, Amsterdam
The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York
Bibliography
Willy VAN DEN BUSSCHE and Paul VAN HOEYDONCK. Paul Van Hoeydonck Retrospectief, exhibition catalogue, Provinciaal Museum voor Moderne Kunst, Oostende, 1996
Willy VAN DEN BUSSCHE, Paul Van Hoeydonck, Lannoo, Belgium, 1980
Solo Exhibitions
2011, Paul Van Hoeydonck: The Abstract Works, FeliXart Museum, Brussels, Belgium.
1995, PMMK, Ostend.
1994, Interior Art Gallery, Brugse Hallen, Bruges.
1993, Paul Van Hoeydonck: Paintings and Collages 1955-1959, Whitford Fine Art, London; Lineart, Ghent.
1991, Galerie De Keizer, Antwerp; Lineart, Ghent; Interior Art Gallery, Brugse Hallen, Bruges; Galerie Arenberg, Antwerp; Galerie Jaski, Amsterdam; Paul Van Hoeydonck: Bonshommes et Boà Monocles 1960 - 1961, The Collection of Adrian Mibus at Connaught Brown Gallery, London.
1990, Abbaye des Cordeliers, Chateauroux; Galerie Forum, Ostend; Lineart, Ghent; Whitford Fine Art, London; Barcelona International Art Forum, Barcelona; Sculpture Groups, Ghent;
1989, PMMK, Ghent; Lineart, Ghent; Galerie Forum, Ostend.
1987, Galerie Harmagedon, Kotrijk.
1986, Alden Biezen Space Art in collaboration with the European Spaceprogram, Bilzen; Oostende Hallen Space '86, Ostend; Galerie Guy Pieters, Knokkle.
1985, Techno Galerie, Brussels; Jakob Smits Museum, Mol.
1984, Festival van Vlaanderen, Ghent; Kunstforum, Schelderode; Gallery Stux, Boston; Zeis Observatorium, Amsterdam; Cultureel Centrum, St. Truiden.
1983, Neue Galerie Sammlung Ludwig, Aachen; Casino, Knokkle; Sid Deutsch Gallery, New York.
1982, BP Building, Antwerp; Galerie De Wever, Wakken; De Brakke Grond, Amsterdam.
1981, Galerie Marnix, Geel; Galerie BP, Brussel.
1980, Stedelijk Prentenkabinet, Antwerp ; Galerie De Vuyst, Lokeren.
1979, Sid Deutsch Gallery, New York ; Galerij Sfinx, Antwerp ; Galerij Maeyaert, Ostend; Kunstforum, Schelderode.
1978, Buchmann Art Gallery, Kapellen - Antwerp; Interior Art Gallery, Bruges; Koningin Fabioladorp, Deurne; Galerij De Vuyst, Lokeren.
1977, Konsthall, Malm.
1976, De Warande, Turnhout; Galerij Van Hoeywegen, St. Kwintens - Lennik; Galerij Hüsstege, Amsterdam; Noordbrabants Museum, 's Hertogenbosch; Gemeentehuismuseum Arnhem; American Library, Brussels.
1975, Galerij Foncke, Ghent.
1974, Kunstmarkt, Basel; Studio Modern Art, Milano; Galerij Isy Brachot, Brussels; Galerie Bonnier, Genève.
1973, Rotonda della Besan, Milano; Galerie Bonnier, Genève; Talbot Rice Art Center, Edinburgh; Annely Juda Gallery, London, Arte Duchamp, Cagliari; Studio Modern Art, Milano.
1972, Galerij F. Lanzenberg, Brussels; Galerij Koncke, Ghent; Galleria Einaudi; Waddell Gallery, New York; Galerij Multi-Art, Antwerp; Galerij Philippe Chabeau, Brussels, Clark Polak's Gallery, Los Angeles.
1971, Waddell Gallery, New York; Svensk-Franska Konstgalleriet, Stockholm; Leids Academiegebouw, Leiden.
1970, Palacio National de Bellas Artes, Mexico City; Galerij Foncke, Bruges; Galerij Fonke, Ghent; Galerie Bonnier, Genève; Galerie Engelberts, Genève; Galerie Rive Gauche, Brussels; Second annuel international Moonwalk Festival, Cape Kennedy.
1969, Contemporary Art Museum, Chicago ; Contemporary Art Museum, Houston ; Kunstverein, Freiburg ; Galerij Withofs, Brussels ; Waddell Gallery, New York, Galerij Foncke, Ghent ; National Gallery of Art, Washington.
1968, Galerij Krikhaar, Amsterdam; Galerie Bonnier, Lausanne; Belgisches Haus, K, International Monetary Fund, Washington, Galerie Mullet, Stuttgart.
1967, Waddell Gallery, New York; Paleis voor Schone Kunsten, Brussels; Galerij Foncke, Ghent; Galerij Contact, Antwerp.
1966, Galerij Krikhaar, Amsterdam; Galerie Cogéime, Brussels.
1965, Waddell Gallery, New York; Svensk-Franska Konstgalleriet, Stockholm; Galerie Theelen, Essen; Galerie der Spiegel, K.
1964, Galerie Iris Clert, Paris; Robert Elkon Gallery, New York; Galleria Apollinaire, Milano; Galleria del Leone, Venezia; Galerie Bonnier, Lausanne; Museum of Fine Arts, Stamford; Galerie Cogiene, Brussels.
1963, Paleis voor Schone Kunsten, Brussels; AP.I.A.W., Liège.
1962, Galerie Zodiaque, Brussels; Robert Elkon Gallery, New York.
1961, Galerie Iris Clert, Paris; Paleis voor Schone Kunsten, Brussels ; Galerij Van der Borght, Brussels ; Galerie Sistina, Sao Paulo ; Galerie Bernard, Grenchen.
1960, Le cercle de l'art modern 'Ex Libris', Ukkel.
1959, Hessenhuis, Antwerp.
1958, Galerij Accent, Antwerp.
1957, Galerie St. Laurent, Brussels.
1956, Galerie St. Laurent, Brussels ; Paleis voor Schone Kunsten, Brussels.
1955, La Galerie Dutilleul, Brussels.
1954, Galerie Cheval de Verre, Brussels; C.A.W., Antwerp.
1953, Galerij Unicum, Bruges.
1952, Galerij Buyle, Antwerp ; Galerij Unicum, Bruges.