Following the solo exhibition Nothing Really Ends in Poznań, MAD Art Gallery Warsaw now presents 27 Shades of Silence – the first major introduction of Ado Hamelryck in the Polish capital. The exhibition pays tribute to an artist who dedicated his life to one fundamental quest: uncovering the infinite richness of black.

The title refers to Hamelryck’s conviction that black is never a single colour but contains at least twenty-seven shades. In his work, black is not an absence but a source, a spectrum, a field where silence and intensity converge. The application of paint, ink, or matter took place through repetitive, rhythmic, meditative gestures. Letters and signs devoid of meaning cover the surface until, out of an almost endless series of movements, a purified image emerges. In this way, Hamelryck transformed what appeared meaningless into a form of significance.