Jean Milo was the pseudonym of Belgian author and artist Émile Van Gindertael. He was born in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode in 1906 and died in 1993 at Rixensart, Belgium. He worked as a painter, poet, essayist, and novelist.
Biography
From 1926 to 1931, Jean Milo served as the director of the Belgian Gallery Le Centaure. As a painter, he was influential over Edgard Tytgat, who later wrote a biography about him. In 1952, he helped found the Art abstrait group, a collective dedicated to abstract art. Later, in 1980, he created a series of photo-collages, which are now held by the Verbeke Foundation in Belgium.
Literary Works
- L'Étang de Malbourg (1938)
- L'Esprit de famille (1944) — awarded the Prix des Deux Magots
- Le Marteau (1956)
Major Exhibitions
- 1986: A retrospective exhibition at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium.
Legacy
Jean Milo is recognized as a key figure in mid-20th-century Belgian art movements, particularly for his lyrical abstractions inspired by atmospheric landscapes, classical music, and influences from his travels. His work is held in public and private collections, and his career is documented in the monograph Jean Milo by L. Haesaerts (Antwerp: De Sikkel, 1954) as part of the Monographies de l'art belge series.
