Bram Bogart Biography
Bram Bogart (1921–2012) was a pioneer of Art Informel, a loosely knit group practicing diverse forms of abstraction in Europe, and was also associated with the CoBrA movement. Art Informel included artists such as Alberto Burri and Antoni Tàpies, whose textural canvases distanced them from their American counterparts, the abstract expressionists. Starting in 1946, Bogart worked in Paris for a decade, a difficult period during which he was criticized by members of the art world. However, after his move to Belgium in 1959, Bogart's work became widely recognized. In 1959 he made frequent stays in Rome (where he met Willem de Kooning and Lucio Fontana), then in Ohain and Kortenbos. While in Brussels he began painting on the floor, increasing the density of his paint to achieve an almost anti-gravity effect, a quality that would define his later output. From the early 1960s onwards, his canvases are characterized by a new technique radiant with colour, light and optimism. Bogart became a Belgian citizen in 1969. Throughout his career he has exhibited widely in Europe, including solo exhibitions at the Cobra Museum of Modern Art, Amstelveen (2012); Kunsthalle, Recklinghausen (2005); PMMK, Museum of Modern Art, Ostend (1995); Palace of Fine Arts, Brussels (1964); and Boijmans Van Beuningen Museum, Rotterdam (1959). In 1970 he represented Belgium at the 35th Venice Biennale. Bogart's work is featured in many museums and public collections including Tate, London; Moderna Museet, Stockholm; Boijmans Van Beuningen Museum, Rotterdam; Mudam, Luxembourg; Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, Sydney; Voorlinden Museum, Wassenaar, Netherlands; National Gallery of Victoria, Australia; SMAK, Ghent; and Yuan Art Museum, Beijing.
