Co-Founder of the Belgian Surrealist Group

Edouard Leon Theodore Mesens was born in 1903 in Brussels, Belgium, he was a writer and an artist with connections to the Belgian Surrealist movement, he died in 1971. Being a gifted composer Mesens embarked on his artistic career as a musician, but in 1923 however, he gave up music to become a poet. Over his lifetime he held many and varied titles such as: poet, composer, collagist, curator and collector.

Mesens was particularly interested in DADA and Surrealism, and was a friend of Magritte, together with Magritte, Nouge and others, he co-founded the Belgian Surrealist Group in 1926. The Venice Biennale in 1954 had several of his collages (created between 1924-30) on display, this exhibition provoked Mesen to devote his time solely to working in collage from then on.

He was also a dynamic gallery organizer working at the  Galerie Mesens 1931 and for seven years at the Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels, Belgium. Mesens held his first solo exhibition at the Galerie Furstenberg, Paris, 1958 and his book Poemes(1923-1958) was published in 1959.

View ‘Untitled’ within the Collection

Untitled by E.L.T Mesens

Untitled by E.L.T Mesens

 

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