14/18 – Rupture or Continuity

The impact of the Great War and its aftermath on Belgian artistic life

World War I had a major effect on Belgian visual arts. German occupation, the horror at the battlefield and the experience of exile led to multiple narratives and artistic expressions by Belgian artists during and after the war. Belgian interbellum art is extremely vibrant and diverse. 14/18 – Rupture or Continuity takes a look at Belgian artistic life in the years around the First World War and how it was affected by this event. The Great War was a catalyst of artistic oppositions, leading on the one hand to a Belgian avant-garde that explored new forms and styles, while continuing to uphold a more traditional and established art on the other. Whereas the war experience consolidated an already present style for some artists, for others it constituted a revolution leading to new artistic adventures. The collection of essays in the present book highlights these contrasting facets of Belgian art in its rich historical context during the early 20th century.

This publication is GPRC-labeled (Guaranteed Peer-Reviewed Content).

Contributors: Werner Adriaenssens (Royal Museums of Art and History, Brussels), Erik Buelinckx (Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage, Brussels), Sophie de Schaepdrijver (Pennsylvania State University), Ole W. Fischer (University of Utah, Salt Lake City), Eva Francioli (Università degli Studi di Firenze), Laura Kollwelter (Royal Museum of Fine Arts of Belgium, Brussels), Christina Kott (Université Panthéon-Assas Paris 2), Françoise Lucbert (Université Laval, Québec), Peter Pauwels (independent art historian, Antwerp), Hubert Roland (F.R.S. – FNRS / Université Catholique de Louvain), Inga Rossi-Schrimpf (Royal Museum of Fine Arts of Belgium, Brussels), Sergio Servellón (FeliXart Museum, Drogenbos), Sandrine Smets (Royal Museum of Armed Forces and Military History, Brussels), Hans Vandevoorde (Vrije Universiteit Brussel), Caterina Verdickt (Universiteit Antwerpen)

"14/18 – Rupture or Continuity" was written by Laura Kollwelter, Werner Adriaenssens, Erik Buelinckx, Sophie De schaepdrijver, Ole W. Fischer, Eva Francioli, Christina Kott, Françoise Lucbert, Peter Pauwels, Hubert Roland, Sergio Servellón, Sandrine Smets, Hans Vandevoorde and Caterina Verdickt.

Laura Kollwelter is a scientific researcher at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Brussels.

Hans Vandevoorde (1960) doceert Nederlandse literatuur aan de Vrije Universiteit Brussel. Hij werkt aan een biografie van August Vermeylen en publiceert over literatuur en cultuur van de negentiende eeuw tot vandaag.

"14/18 – Rupture or Continuity" was edited by Inga Rossi-Schrimpf.

Inga Rossi-Schrimpf is the curator of modern works on paper (19th–21st century) at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium and Coordinating Curator of the Fin-de-Siècle Museum, Brussels, Belgium.

PréfaceMichel Draguet

Before and After? Rupture or Continuity? Belgian Art around the First World War. An IntroductionInga Rossi-Schrimpf

Shaping the Experience of Military Occupation: Ten ImagesSophie De Schaepdrijver

14/18 Rupture or Continuity? Belgian Art Around World War I in the Collections of the Royal Museums of Fine ArtsInga Rossi-Schrimpf & Laura Kollwelter

Illustrations

ARTISTS AT WAR AND ABROAD – ON THE FRONT AND IN EXILE

L’art en guerre ! L’État belge, mécène des artistes combattants :politique bienveillante ou nécessité impérieuse ?Sandrine Smets

‘My heart is sore about brave Belgium’ – Artistic Exodus: Belgian Refugee Artists in Great Britain during the Great WarCaterina Verdickt

Jacob and Louise De Graaff – Patrons of Modern Belgian Artists in ExileLaura Kollwelter

OCCUPATION – INFLUENCES ON THE ART MARKET AND THE INTERCULTURAL EXCHANGES

Belgian Art During the First World War: Exhibitions and Salons in BrusselsWerner Adriaenssens

« Rencontres interculturelles » et occupation : un nouvel élan pour les transferts culturels belgo-allemands après 1918Christina Kott et Hubert Roland

Precursors or Followers? The German Art Scene and the Role and Image of Belgian Art Around World War IInga Rossi-Schrimpf

POLITICIZED ART AROUND WWI

When Flemish Nationalism, Progressivism, and Avant-Gardism Came Together: 1917-1922Sergio Servellón

Albert Daenens (1883-1952): Belgian Artist From Brussels, Flemish Activist and French Publicist, International Anarchist and Antimilitarist Before, During and After World War IErik Buelinckx

BELGIAN ART AND THE INTERNATIONAL AVANT-GARDE OF THE 1920’S-NETWORKS

Modernist Generations in Belgium: United and Divided by Community ArtHans Vandevoorde

The Originality of the 7 Arts’ Constructivism: The Connections to The Belgian Pre-War Art SceneEva Francioli

Réseaux d’artistes avant et après la guerre : le cas exemplaire de la Section d’orFrançoise Lucbert

BELGIAN ART AND THE INTERNATIONAL AVANT-GARDES OF THE 1920’S – CASE STUDIES

From Avant-garde to Arrière-garde? – Henry van de Velde’s Architectural Oeuvre Before and After World War IOle W. Fischer

‘Votre lettre m’a bien intéressée’: Marthe “Tour” Donas and the Belgian Art Scene Around 1920Peter J.H. Pauwels

Illustrations
Abstracts
About the Authors
Bibliography
Illustration Credits
List of works shown in the exhibition 14-18. Rupture or Continuity - Belgian Art around World War I
Colophon