marcasite
Ado Chale is a Belgian artist and designer best known for his exquisite mosaic inlays. Pieces of wood, minerals, or bone are sliced, arranged, and coated with resin to form the opulent surfaces. His furniture and domestic objects reference the natural world not only through the use of precious stones, metals, and organic materials, but also through the textures, patterns, and forms they express. Chale opened his first gallery in 1962. He exhibited jewelry and small side tables adorned with his unique inlay and sourced various gems and rocks via international travel. The self-taught craftsman then incorporated his acquisitions into larger pieces of furniture and sculptures attractive for their beauty and novelty in the 1970s. His work has been exhibited at the Ixelles Museum in Belgium, in France at the Museum of Fine Arts in Nancy and the Palais des Papes in Avignon, and in Japan at retail chain Seibu’s contemporary art museum.