Long before Belgian artist Manuel De Mey found his voice as a painter, his heart had already shaped the way he saw the world. Diagnosed with a heart condition as a child, he grew up with an awareness of vulnerability that continues to influence the expressive portraits he creates today. His contribution to Heart Research UK’s anonymous heART project brings together two defining parts of his life, his experience of heart disease and his need to understand the human condition through art.
What inspired you to take part in Heart Research UK’s anonymous heART project this year?
“Out of the blue, I received an email from Rachel Brooke from Heart Research UK, who saw my art on Instagram and requested me to join the project. What she didn’t know was that I’ve had heart surgery myself, and that I also have a connection with the UK, since my mother was British and she married my Flemish father. So, it didn’t take me long to decide to join the project.”
Do you have a personal connection to heart diseases or to Heart Research UK’s work? If so, would you be happy to tell us about it?
“At the age of six, I was diagnosed with a heart condition called Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA), it is a persistent opening between the aorta and the pulmonary artery. While essential for an unborn baby, this vessel should close shortly after birth; when it remains open, it can cause abnormal blood flow, heart strain and breathing difficulties.
“In my case, it caused me to develop nightmarish sleepwalking, which started at the age of four and worsened over the years. I would typically have sleep terrors, waking up screaming and running in extreme panic. Since the situation only grew worse, and I was already a shy, sensitive kid, my parents only saw a doctor after an evening when they had invited friends over. They said, “Oh, it’s nearly 11 pm. Don’t be startled, but in a moment, Manuel will come into the living room running and screaming.” And surely, that was exactly what happened.
“The friends were shocked and convinced my parents to see a doctor. This all happened in the early seventies and at that time, it was quite a serious operation, performed through an open-chest incision. I still have a scar of 50 cm, going from the front of my chest all the way to the back.
“As long as I can remember, I was a shy, sensitive child, scared of people and easily shocked by the bad things in the world. I don’t even know if this was caused by my heart condition or if it was already part of my character. And this is fundamental to the theme of my art. When I paint, I’m still this shy, sensitive kid, trying to show how cruel and mad the world can be and how senseless everything really is. So, I paint vulnerable, melancholic people, looking for sense in the world. They are, in fact, all self-portraits in a manner of speaking.”
How would you describe your artistic style and what are the biggest influences on your work?
“I always describe my paintings as ‘expressive portraits’. I try to paint quickly and boldly, with gestural strokes in oil paint, but also put lines in with charcoal. I often scratch into the paintings and leave pieces unfinished. I am influenced by my mother, who was also a painter (Lilian Adcock), and her influences are also my influences (Schiele, Ensor, Modigliani, Bacon, Rik Wouters). But I’m also influenced by Manga, sci-fi and graphic novels.”
Can you tell us a little about your journey as an artist?
“In fact, although my mother was a painter, I went totally the other way and studied Computer Science. I was a web designer for over 25 years. Everything changed when my girlfriend and I visited Burning Man in 2017. We were blown away by all the creativity there and decided we should have more creativity in our lives, so we both signed up at the Art Academy. I was immediately hooked and started painting more and more and before I knew it, I was a professional artist.”
What inspired the piece you’ve created for anonymous heart project, and is there a story or message behind it?
“I did not create a specific story for the pieces I made for this project. The theme is always the same: vulnerable, melancholic people, looking for meaning in the world. But people always see different things in my paintings and I’m totally happy with that. In fact, I tend to make the paintings open to interpretation, so people can project their own emotions onto them.”
Why do you think initiatives like anonymous heART are important, and what would you say to someone thinking about supporting Heart Research UK?
“Yes, well, that’s really a no-brainer. Heart research (and any medical research, for that matter) is saving lives every day. Without it, I would already have died 50 years ago.”
Manuel’s painting is part of a collection built on personal stories and motivations, shared through art in support of heart research. Sign up and hear more about the anonymous heART project and discover the people behind the artworks.