De Belder Guido

"We refer to contemporary society without taking a position. In our everyday lives, we too have noticed the return to what is 'real' or 'authentic'. Just think of those trendy artisan bakeries or cheese shops that are springing up like mushrooms." Jos de Gruyter in metropolis m.

In 2019, Jos de Gruyter and Harald Thys brought their exhibition MONDO CANE to the 58th Venice Biennale, turning the Belgian pavilion into a kind of folklore museum with automated puppets. In the central room, artisans diligently plied their crafts, from pottery to knife grinding. Meanwhile, in the adjacent rooms, a cast of motley characters like villains, poets and zombies looked on behind bars. A split universe caught in a constant state psychosis.

The sculpture The Belder Guido was created for this exhibition. It is based on a recurring character in their work. The duo describes him as follows: "De Belder Guido, a painter from Leuven, is the inventor of realist-abstract magic romanticism, an artistic style he is the sole practitioner of. He described this movement in great detail in a 150-page manifesto, which was unfortunately lost. In his work, we see dreary visions mingling with landscapes full of timid animals. De Belder was never successful during his lifetime. He survived on handouts and the modest pension of his mother, who looked after him all her life. After his death, the city of Leuven bought some of his works."