Veerle de Vos België, b. 1962
"The 'dikke madammen' reflect our womanhood in a striking way. We are who we are. Content with how we are and to be accepted as we are."
Veerle De Vos, born on May 3, 1962, and residing in Avelgem, Belgium, completed her bachelor's degree in psychology in 1982. After spending some time in the education sector, she took a dramatic turn in her career. Together with her husband, she founded a banking and insurance office in 1991.
Originally, Veerle had no ambitions in the creative field, but a severe bicycle accident in 2004 led to a meaningful change in her life. She dedicated herself entirely to visual arts, a passion she has pursued with great dedication ever since.
This life-altering experience brought her even more determination and enthusiasm in all her endeavours. She constantly experiments with different materials, colours, shapes, and themes. Each year, she works with a variety of materials, from clay and polyester to precious metals and bronze, and she even uses the famous Carrara marble.
Veerle's artworks cover a wide range of themes and materials, but the common thread is the focus on creation, life, humanity, and the world. Her works are both visually and tactilely appealing, inviting to touch, yet simultaneously fragile and vulnerable.
This is already evident in her early works. Her engaging female figures - the "dikke madammen" - and massive primal beasts, passionately formed, embody fertility. These figures are deliberately imperfect in form, emphasising that true beauty and purity can be found in the soul.