Daniële Dewaele (1950)
Belgium
Biography :
"Daniël Dewaele was born in Knokke in Belgium.
He is self-taught. As a young artist, under the influence of Arte Povera, he discovers the free usage of materials. In the mid-1970s he creates assemblages using burlap, plastic sheeting and wood. In addition, he makes drawings in which he incorporates branches and ropes. Dewaele’s attention to matter and tactility soon shifts to the floor and the wall. In this way, he starts to mark off areas in his studio with pieces of adhesive tape or rope to explore the boundary between the artwork and the spatial context.
These experiments lead in 1976 to Dewaele’s first public intervention: the blocking of the entrance of the Groeningemuseum in Bruges with a strip of tape. In doing so, he calls attention to the gap between the artistic space and the non-artistic space (the street). In addition, Dewaele makes reference to the issue of artistic appropriation through a playful reversal: instead of displaying art objects in the museum, the museum displays itself – even if only temporarily − as its own art.
This action is Daniël Dewaele’s first step in the direction of a ›sociological practice‹, with which he aims to bridge the gap between society and the art world. He conducts this research by means of questionnaires, interviews and surveys in the street. In this way, Dewaele breaks down the one-way boundary between artist and audience. For the presentation of his projects, Daniel Dewaele will also rely on ›new media‹, such as photography and video."
(Source, website, Forgotten Heritage)