DECAY WORKS (2016-Ongoing)
Decay works is a series that explores transformation, impermanence, and the tension between beauty and decay. Herck uses experimental processes that let materials evolve naturally, reflecting chemical reactions and the forces of nature. Rather than controlling the outcome, the artist collaborates with the materials.
By crushing dinosaur bones and teeth, the work taps into myth and history, bridging the past with an uncertain future. This process reflects on human vulnerability and the impermanence of life.
Pulverized bone also references Flemish Vanitas painting, emphasizing mortality and the fleeting nature of beauty. The series combines different materials and colors to explore contrasts like violence and purity, aggression and delicacy.
The works create a layered reflection on time, vanity, and transformation. Themes of light and darkness, symbolized by gold and black, shift with lighting and mood. A quote by Georges Braque—"art is a wound that becomes a light"—captures the heart of the project: fragile, yet enduring.
Pieces of Edmontosaurus dinosaur bones.
Crushing and dismantling of the bones.
Studio view.
Adding the golden layer to the canvas.
Untitled
2023
160 x 120 cm
Mixed media on canvas
Untitled
2020
160 x 200 cm
Mixed media on canvas
Untitled
2020
3 x 110 x 100 cm
Mixed media on canvas
Untitled
2020
160 x 200 cm
Mixed media on canvas
Untitled
2020
120 x 200 cm
Mixed media on canvas
© Text by Lara Van Oudernaarde.
© Photos by Tom Herck, Stijn Elshout and Erik Jamar.