Flemish Writer and Painter. Gaston was born the third child in a large, wealthy family. He completed his early education by 1915, but was unable to attend college due to World War I. To avoid transport to Germany as a laborer, he retook some classes. While there he met Jan Melis, a fellow student who espoused flamingantism, a movement that encouraged Flemish nationalism. He began to publish around 1915, with one of his papers "Het Vlaamsche Nieuws" calling for home rule for Flanders. His first poems began to appear around the same time. His writings continued to support the Flemish movement and while a clerk at the Ministry of Agriculture gave several lectures supporting this belief. This commitment led to a six month prison stay. The first collection of poems "Verses" in published in 1918. After the war, his writing reflected a changed view of the world evolving into more of organic expressionism. "French en andere cancan" exemplified this new freestyle. Every poem is given a different font, orientation, some with decoration. In 1947, he joined the editorial board of Podium and continued to contribute to several other publications as well. He received the Triennial State Prize for Poetry three times for "Clamps for songbirds," "Pegasos of Troy, and "Adieu". After the second World War, he took up painting, holding an exhibition in Brussels in 1958, exhibiting a somewhat surrealist style. When his good friend, Paul Van Ostaijen died in 1928, he wrote several essays promoting his writings, edited his literary catalog and published some of his earlier work posthumously. In 1927, he started Lavandia, a soap and dryer company which he managed until 1961.
Flemish Writer and Painter. Gaston was born the third child in a large, wealthy family. He completed his early education by 1915, but was unable to attend college due to World War I. To avoid transport to Germany as a laborer, he retook some classes. While there he met Jan Melis, a fellow student who espoused flamingantism, a movement that encouraged Flemish nationalism. He began to publish around 1915, with one of his papers "Het Vlaamsche Nieuws" calling for home rule for Flanders. His first poems began to appear around the same time. His writings continued to support the Flemish movement and while a clerk at the Ministry of Agriculture gave several lectures supporting this belief. This commitment led to a six month prison stay. The first collection of poems "Verses" in published in 1918. After the war, his writing reflected a changed view of the world evolving into more of organic expressionism. "French en andere cancan" exemplified this new freestyle. Every poem is given a different font, orientation, some with decoration. In 1947, he joined the editorial board of Podium and continued to contribute to several other publications as well. He received the Triennial State Prize for Poetry three times for "Clamps for songbirds," "Pegasos of Troy, and "Adieu". After the second World War, he took up painting, holding an exhibition in Brussels in 1958, exhibiting a somewhat surrealist style. When his good friend, Paul Van Ostaijen died in 1928, he wrote several essays promoting his writings, edited his literary catalog and published some of his earlier work posthumously. In 1927, he started Lavandia, a soap and dryer company which he managed until 1961.
Bio by: Winter Birds PA
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