Bernard Descheemaeker - Works of Art

Bernard Descheemaeker (°1964) studied art history at the university of Louvain. After museum experiences at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna and the Rubens House in Antwerp, I worked for 10 years in the art trade. In September 2000, I founded my own gallery (located in Antwerp) which is specialized in sculptures and works of art from the middle ages, the renaissance and the baroque (c.1150-1650). My main specialities are Limoges painted enamels from the renaissance -with a current collection of more than 50 pieces- on the one hand and Northern European late gothic sculpture, mainly from Flanders (Brussels, Antwerp and Malines) on the other. Besides, I also present medieval champlevé enamels, gothic ivories, decorative bronze objects, tapestries, Antwerp ceramics and 17th century Flemish and Dutch paintings, oil sketches and drawings. I try to focus on top-quality objects for an international clientèle comprising collectors and museums alike. In contrary to most dealers, I participate only very rarely in fairs, but present my newest acquisitions through my website (www.worksofart.be) and, in particular, through catalogues.

Insights From The Exhibitor

Limoges Enamel Ewer (c.1565-1575)

Descent from the Cross (Brussels, c.1475-1480)

Limoges enamel plaque (c.1590)

Oil Sketch by Pieter De Lint (c.1642-1645)

Swooning of the Virgin (Brussels, c.1435-1445)

Limoges champlevé enamel plaque (c.1210-1220)

Regularly, I organize a sales exhibition on a specific theme. Those exhibitions, which take place in my Antwerp gallery, are all accompanied by an illustrated catalogue.

My current exhibition marks my 20th anniversary as an art dealer and it features a Selection of 30 objects from my current collection. For this exhibition and its accompanying catalogue (Ars Longa. 20 Years of Masterpieces from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance), I have selected 30 works of art, covering each of my specialisms at least once: Flemish late-medieval sculptures; champlevé enamels from the 12th and 13th centuries; Gothic ivory carvings; bronze objects; a relief in mother-of-pearl; Renaissance tapestries; Flemish 17th-century paintings and drawings; Antwerp ceramics; and 16th-century painted enamels from Limoges. Nevertheless, there exists unity in such diversity: each piece has been selected on the basis of its extraordinary quality, its extreme rarity, its art historical relevance and its excellent condition.

For a complete overview of all my previous exhibitions: see: www.worksofart.be.