13 august 2021, Oscar van Gelderen
The Gallery of … Joris Van der Borght and Nancy De Vos
We’re you exposed to art while growing up?
Art was always present at our home and in the family, being creative was also stimulated. My parents both worked in the pedagogical sector, both were creative and encouraged their children in this. My mother was more musical (piano, singing) and drew well, my father tinkered and decorated everything in the house and renovated several houses with his own hands, including a holiday home. He taught me that you could actually achieve everything yourself, you just had to start and think from solutions instead of problems. At the same time, we practically lived in the backyard of the Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent; as a citizen of Ghent you could enter there for free on Sundays, so we did that regularly. It's amazing how classical art was shown together with contemporary art in that museum.
Those museum visits played a part of course, but we also regularly visited museum or gallery when on holidays with the family. My father was also friends with a number of (local) artists. I remember the sculptors Lieven Spaans and Walter Debuck, painters Richard Curé and Etienne Lecompte, musicians such as Wim Decraene and Peter Koelewijn. My father was also a regular and willing lender for these people (often in exchange for a symbolic work). At the same time, my father often went to arts and antiques auctions. He regularly took me there as a child, because I was the only willing 'victim'. Despite the fact that my father came from an ordinary working-class family in Aalst, he did his utmost to stimulate me in the artistic field.
Our cousin by marriage was about twenty years older, she worked together with Jan Hoet and obtained a doctorate in Western Art History at the University of Ghent in the 1970s. Together with Jan Hoet – and through her PhD – she brought Joseph Beuys to Belgium. I remember how magical the visit to that exhibition was in the first half of the seventies, and also how I was introduced to Joseph Beuys! This left a huge impression on me.
What was your first job in a gallery? Or did you immediately start a gallery yourself?
Actually, I never intended to start a gallery at all. I was a visual artist myself, with a fascinating trajectory behind me, under artistic pseudonyms (W.O.K, NCNP, NGIP). I was represented by four different galleries throughout the 1980s and 1990s. My work became more and more 'conceptual' until a major artistic 'guerilla action' killed me just during the 9/11 crisis; my work was apparently a bit too visionary from a national security perspective and future actions/performances were banned.
Afterwards I started to play it ‘safe' and organizing sound and action projects with other artists became a greater part of my artistic work. For example, as a result of one of my last real own shows, I became chairman-manager of Croxhapox, an experimental art venue in Ghent. I fulfilled that position from 2005 to 2017.
Together with my wife Nancy (De Vos, commercial director Bruthausgallery), we placed Croxhapox on the structural subsidy list of the Flemish Government in 2005. We were a strong team of three together with Laura Van (Artistic Director) and thanks to our solid operation and we secured longterm and structural funding. In that period Croxhapox grew into an art venue of 1000 square metres of exhibition space, where more than sixty projects were organized annually with more than ninety artists (per year!). We learned quite a few tricks there; organizing quickly, coming up with solutions in all areas. In addition to my artistic practice, I was also in education (1990-2010, DKO for adults: 3D and philosophy of art), I never really wanted to be in education, but I did it with the same mission and conviction as my own artistic work. After twenty years I was tired of it, Nancy told me to stop.
In order to survive I started to design and executor of furniture, bicycles, studio and interior solutions. After all, over the years as a performance and installation artist I had created a lot of 'functional artefacts'. I built furniture with the same vision. At a certain moment we needed a showroom, we then found the building in Waregem, which offered great value for money and best suited our needs and options, and we decided to organize exhibitions there for functional art, in addition to contemporary art.
After a few years we switched to 'visual art' exclusively, which was my core business to begin with.
We are a bit of an odd one out; my vision as an artist has actually flowed seamlessly into my work as a gallerist/curator. In fact, some of my closest friends think this is one of my lengthiest performances ever… And who knows…
Anyway, from my own experiences with galleries, I noticed a need that often could not be filled by a gallery. The biological necessity of an artist to be an artist is very much in line with my own experience. I know that feeling all too well and take it into account.
We never view the gallery as a company with suppliers and customers. We want to show art with an interest and sell it to the right collections, who are equally passionate about continuing the work.
In addition, we are not trend hoppers: content, authenticity and integrity are the most important. We choose artists when we feel they can make an interesting contribution to the history of art and to the story we think the world needs right now. Originally, we both had a narrower vision about this, but it has fully blossomed thanks to the artists we work with.
A red thread remains the teamwork. Bruthausgallery grows together with the artists and with the collectors. Each of these parties plays an important part in this. We also show so-called hard-to-sell work, such as installations and performances. We even sold 'Hands against the Wall', a performance by Ben Benaouisse, as an immaterial work of art to the SMAK in Ghent.
Our motto is: if you can sell shit, you can certainly sell quality. And it works! It's certainly not the easiest way commercially, but that's okay; it is the art, its meaning and its creator that count..
And that is another important point: we trust the artist and often give carte blanche, it is the artist who knows which works are important to him/her. We don't often choose what we show in the gallery, the artist chooses that himself. Of course we keep an eye on quality, especially when it comes to young artists. From my long experience as an artist, organizer and teacher I can advise artists, but only if they ask for that. We also help starting artists to build up their artistic identity, according to their individuality of course. It's fragile. Furthermore, we think it is very important that artists transcend their egos, egos that are too highly developed stand in the way of development and are usually based on fear. And fear is not a good counsellor for experimentation and self-development.
We recently succeeded at having two great artists – Willem Boel & Les Monseigneurs, whose work is seemingly unrelated – discuss and present each other’s work at Ballroom Project in Antwerp and Art Rotterdam. That was an enormous achievement; the ego of the artists was set aside, their own work was sufficiently relativized, so that they themselves became, in their own words, 'artistically and mentally richer'. It was something we've tried at croxhapox for years, it's the first time it worked out so well!
Joris Van der Borght during the construction of the exhibition 'Sic Transit Gloria Mundi' by Hugo Debaere (1958-1994) in 2019. Photo: Koen Snauwaert.
What do you think is the best part of being a gallerist?
The unimaginable input you get from the artists themselves. The unbelievably beautiful trust of the collectors. The beauty of proper teamwork. Finally being able to achieve a trusting collaboration, which I always aimed for as an artist, but which only now works as a gallery owner. Being able to defend the work of artists tooth and nail is much more satisfying than having to defend your own work. The adventure of having to redefine yourself and your company in time. Working with people who are younger, without feeling the age difference. The beautiful conversations with passionate people, both artists and collectors. The feeling that you are growing as a person and as a gallery owner. Being able to experience how artists grow, become more confident and evolve in their work. The feeling that the continuous work that my wife Nancy and I do for this gallery is indeed yielding results.
These are all things that are very dear to me. It's like coming home at last; I feel I have succeeded in my task as an artist, while I am no longer one at all.
Being allowed to continue to evolve and develop through contact with all fascinating artists and their work is indeed the most beautiful thing a person can experience.
‘Grote Borst’ - 1993 - elephant & cow dung, wool, camel hair, jute, chicken wire & rope - 254 x 150 x 60cm. Photo: J.Van der Borght.
Which national / international galleries do you feel an affinity with?
We don't compare ourselves with other galleries, we don't have time for that, we follow our own path without an example. Our operation often resembles a non-profit organization (but one that generates something). I do know that Andy Warhol's The Factory has always inspired me; how he allowed younger people to blossom. Joseph Beuys, who inspired new young people with his teaching, is also an inspiration, although I myself have no ego that needs to be brought forward; that time has passed and that is a redemption.
Hugo Debaere - selfportrait - 'autoportrait' - Hugo Debaere - 1986 - plaster, jute, acrylic colors - 54 x 54 x 24cm. Photo: J.Van der Borght.
In an ideal world, which artist would you most like to represent?
It might be a bit odd to say, but we are very fortunate to work very closely with a number of artists we represent. I am sorry that Hugo Debaere (1958-1994) has passed away, we represent his work as the only gallery. Incidentally, this was stimulated by Philippe Van Cauteren. As a sculpture student at the Sint Lucas Academy, and later as a young artist, I was a special fan and followed his work closely. I wish I could still talk to him every day, visit his studio and philosophize together. He was a special and visionary artist about whom we know too little, since he passed away before the internet existed.
But we feel privileged and happy to be able to work and talk with artists like Willem Boel, Thomas Renwart, Evert Debusschere, Nina Van Denbempt, Chego Check, Maxime Brigou and Aaron Viktor Peeters.
In an ideal world, maybe fifty years ago I would have liked to work with Joseph Beuys or Bruce Nauman, but I am very happy with the opportunities we have now.
Nancy De Vos 2020. Photo: Koen Snauwaert.
What has changed in the art world since you took your first steps?
We started as a gallery only in 2012, but I still notice number of changes. While in our youth and young adult world we mainly thought in a 'left/right' (progressive/conservative) idiom, we notice that the mindset of younger people runs right through this much more. Fortunately, we have also evolved in the meantime, of course. We also notice that artists have become more entrepreneurial in the meantime, usually for the better. And that we ourselves have changed the most – we evolve every day through the wonderful contact with artists, their works and their world view.
Joris Van der Borght 2020. Photo: Koen Snauwaert.
What / whose work do you collect yourself?
Firstly, works by our own artists and mainly young Belgian artists. Of course, the artists we represent are our favourites. If we were an international collectors duo, Bruce Nauman, Joseph Beuys and Hugo Debaere would certainly not be missing in our collection.
Work by Willem Boel on top of work by Thomas Renwart (Les Monseigneurs) at Ballroom Project Antwerp 2021. Photo: Dajo Van den Bussche.
Has the pandemic changed the way you see the artworld?
Absolutely, during the first lockdown we suddenly, unintentionally, got a breather! We dropped out of the rat race and became even more convinced of our own way of working than we were before. We stick to this way even more now and don't try to affirm ourselves with other galleries or their way of working. We also notice a deepening among the artists and collectors, which is good, precisely because we have always aimed for 'content'. At the same time, we have noticed more than ever how important it is to really feel, smell and see visual art, and you cannot replace that with an image or virtual simulation.
Work by Willem Boel throughout and on top of work by Thomas Renwart (Les Monseigneurs) at Art Rotterdam 2021. Photo: Dajo Van den Bussche.
See all artists represented by BruthausGallery
