A Belgian Sculptor on the Perils of Minimalism

Last Thursday, the New York design gallery Demisch Danant opened “I am I,” an exhibition that presents more than 90 handcrafted lamps, vessels and objects from Jos Devriendt's 20-year career. Devriendt, 53, is known for espousing minimalism, though he stops short of defending minimalism for its own sake. It’s simple to make a minimalist object, the shaggy-haired artist explains, “but in the end it’s like so straight,” or fine-tuned to perfection, “that you don’t have an excitement about the forms.” And when that happens, he warns, it becomes boring.