MASTERPIECE

The purchase of this painting by the City of Bruges in 1961 was undeniably a milestone in the Groeninge Museum’s collecting history. After all, it expanded the collection with its first abstract artwork.

Not everyone was as easily reconciled to this. But Mr Roger De Mey, then a member of the city council, could not have been clearer when he declared at the city council meeting of 17 July 1961: ‘Whether this painting pleases or interest each of us personally is of secondary importance here. […] Abstract art, whether we like it or not, has occupied such an important place that it can no longer be overlooked.’

In fairness, it should be pointed out that it was the progressive cultural association ‘Raaklijn’ that got the ball rolling. This independent cultural forum, led by the writer Paul De Wispelaere, championed contemporary artistic expression and abstract art between 1956 and 1963. Raaklijn organized poetry evenings, lectures, film screenings, concerts with experimental music and exhibitions with work by Victor Servranckx, Michel Seuphor, Jo Delahaut and Luc Peire, among others. In doing so, they paved the way for the infamous Bruges Triennials of 1968, 1971 and 1974.