René Mels ( 1909-1977) - Structure verticale - Rare essai lithographique

René Mels (1909–1977) Belgium

Vertical structure

Handwritten note: '26xmal' in pencil, probably a workshop note.

Embossed engraving – lithographic test

Dimensions: 63 × 48.5 cm (sheet)

Signature: Signed in pencil at the bottom left 'R. Mels'.

Circa 1960–1965

Condition: Very good overall condition; traces of an old framing and slight color variations due to the mat, without severity.

Framing: Sold unframed

Provenance: artist's family

Description of the work

Created around 1960–1965, Vertical Structure illustrates René Mels's period of technical and formal experimentation, marked by an in-depth exploration of embossing and relief engraving. This print, probably unique, is a lithographic trial preserved by the artist's family.

The composition is organized around a rhythm of vertical plans, alternating dark and light zones, solids and voids. In the center, a brighter rectangular shape seems to emerge from the background, creating a breath within a dense and structured space. The embossing emphasizes this tension between material and light, giving the surface of the paper an almost sculptural dimension.

The handwritten annotation '26xmal', made in pencil, should be understood as a workshop note rather than a title: it likely indicates a technical reference or an internal code used by the artist during their trials.

Plastic lecture

This engraving stands out for the architectural strength of its composition and the sobriety of its palette. Through the use of embossing, Mels transforms the flat surface of the paper into a true space of relief, where light is inscribed into the material.

Black, dense and modulated, acts like a living substance: it absorbs, reveals, and structures. Each imprint becomes a trace, each hollow a space of silence. The work exudes a contained tension, both rigorous and poetic, characteristic of Mels' most experimental period.

Artistic context

In the early 1960s, René Mels deepened his research into engraving and embossing, seeking to go beyond the mere printed image to achieve a physical presence of the form. His studio proofs, often unique, reflect a constant reflection on material, light, and depth.

Vertical structure fully embodies this approach: a work where paper becomes a space of sculpture, and where light is born from the dialogue between hollows and reliefs.

A rare and precious ordeal
Original engraving in etching and embossing.
Signed by the artist's own hand
Handwritten annotation « 26xmal » – workshop note
Visible reliefs and embossings across the entire surface.
Very good state of preservation
Provenance: family of René Mels
Probably a unique work, resulting from an experimental phase.


Biography of René Mels (1909–1977)
René Mels, Belgian painter and engraver, was born in Herent-lez-Louvain in 1909. Trained at the Académie de Leuven, then in Brussels and at La Cambre, he established himself as a major figure in Belgian modernism after the war.

Member of the Young Belgian Painting and the Art Abstrait group, he actively participates in the artistic renewal of the era. His work, initially expressionist, evolves towards a structured and luminous abstraction, where matter becomes a vehicle for emotion and spirituality.

His engravings, often unique, reflect the same requirement as his painting: a quest for balance between formal rigor, silence, and inner depth. René Mels passed away in 1977 in Woluwe-Saint-Lambert, leaving behind a body of work of great coherence and rare intensity.

A unique studio work, the vertical structure embodies René Mels's most intimate exploration: an investigation of light through matter, where paper becomes space, relief, and memory.