André Dekeijser

André Dekeijser (Brussel 1 August 1924 – 9 December 2013) was a Belgian contemporary sculptor known for his abstract and monumental work primarily in copper and bronze.

[3] He joined his friend André Eijberg before establishing a workshop of his own where he returned to terracotta and patinas and began experimenting with new materials like blocks of Ytong (aerated concrete), whose low price allowed him to create oversized pieces.

[3] In order to ascertain pieces could withstand enlargement, small clay or wax models were submitted to a test of a series of figurines diminishing in size.

Having constructed several homes in the Congo and Brazil with his own hands, André Dekeijser created the project and built the model of a sculpture-home that was never completed despite the genuine interest of several architects.

Having lived far from modern civilization, in the large tropical forests of Central Africa and the immense high plateaus of southern Brazil, it's no wonder that his art is neither weak or timid, but rather massive, imposing yet understated, made to be enlarged.

Other themes explored include the mechanics of objects that make up a puzzle whereby the fun lies in studying the empty spaces and surfaces of each piece by taking them apart and trying to put them back in the correct order.

Large bronze, 1975
Giant Laying Forms 1971, Arlon-Triers