Colorist ADO HAMELRYCK and his passion for... black
"onderHUIDs" at Gallery Sofie Van den Bussche
What Ado Hamelryck (°1940) entrusts to Nepali handmade paper yields wondrous, sacred-feeling minutiae. His monk's work of carving, writing and giving marks with no apparent meaning a place, produces pearls of untold versions of black. The title of the exhibition, "OnderHUIDs", obviously indicates the stratification of his (life's) work.
Hamelryck, who uses nothing but black (collage, acrylic, India ink), nonetheless calls himself... kolorist. Here and there lights up what is slightly less/soft black or even white, and the supports of his artworks seem kneaded by his artful and never-quiet hand.
His works, despite their apparent monotony, manage to surprise every time. They are unique. Their authenticity is beyond question. All the works in the gallery were realised in 2023 and 2024.
Hamelryck's work is owned by various museums such as the M HKA Antwerp and MuZee Ostend.
Johan De Bruyne