Jos De Decker was born on September 18, 1912, in Dendermonde, and passed away in 2000. A renowned sculptor and medallist, he inherited his father’s musical abilities from an early age and studied violin at the Dendermonde Academy of Music. He was hired by Cinéma Belgica to accompany silent films as part of an orchestra, but with the rise of talking pictures, his role as a violinist was no longer needed.

It was from 1928 onwards that he turned decisively to sculpture, studying under Alfred Courtens. Supported by a grant, he continued his training at the Academy of Brussels under sculptors Jacques Marin, Victor Rousseau and Egide Rombaux (1931), before working in the studio of Egide Rombaux, a sculptor and medallist based in Uccle, from 1934 to 1940. The Prix Buls (1934) allowed him to study in Paris, while the Triennial Prize for Sculpture took him on a three-month journey through Italy. In 1941, he was awarded second place in the Prix de Rome competition.

His artistic career ran alongside a distinguished teaching career: he taught at the Dendermonde Academy from 1947 to 1978 and became its director in 1970, passing on his knowledge and passion to many generations of artists.

Among his official commissions are the monuments to Queen Astrid in Dendermonde (1938) and Ghent (1950), a fountain in Dendermonde, the group of Kneeling Children with Shells in Parc Joséphine Charlotte, and a statue by the pond in front of Lokeren train station (1950), offered by the city to Princess Joséphine Charlotte. He also created several war memorials, including Pro Patria in Baasrode (1946), Hommage aux héros in Buggenhout, Hofstade and Auderghem (1947), and at the Vogelenzang Cemetery in Anderlecht (1957). His other works include busts, notably that of Auguste De Boeck (1967), religious pieces, decorative bas-reliefs for facades, and the Civitas Dei pavilion for the 1958 World’s Fair. His medals and plaques, among them the Cheval Bayard in Dendermonde, were exhibited at the International Federation of the Medal, at the Sterckxhof in Deurne, and at the Royal Library.

He began exhibiting in 1936 at the Dendermonde Academy and went on to participate in numerous exhibitions across Belgium and abroad, including Stockholm (1955), Antwerp (1956, 1958, 1960, 1962) and the Middelheim (1974). In 1971, the Galerie De Vuyst in Lokeren dedicated a retrospective to him to mark his 40 years of activity.

His distinctions are numerous: the State Gold Medal (1933), First Prize for Medals and Plaques from the Province of East Flanders (1954), the Prix Civitatis Dei at the Brussels World’s Fair (1958) for his work Saint Joseph Ouvrier, the Conrad Chapman Prize in the United States (1969), and membership of the Royal Academy of Belgium since 1955. His works were acquired by the Belgian State, the Ministry of Public Works, the Province of East Flanders, the Coin Cabinet of the Albertina in Brussels, and the cities of Dendermonde, Brussels, Lokeren and Anderlecht.

Jos De Decker left an enduring legacy, celebrated for his ability to combine impeccable technique with deep artistic sensitivity. His work continues to inspire and move art lovers well beyond his passing in 2000.