Van Ostaijen was born in Antwerp to Dutch father and Flemish mother. His nickname was Mister 1830, derived from his habit of walking along the streets of Antwerp clothed as a dandy from that year.
Van Ostaijen was an active flamingant, a supporter of Flemish independence. Because of his involvement with Flemish activism during World War I, he had to flee to Berlin after the war. In Berlin—one of the centers of Dadaism and Expressionism—he met many other artists. He also struggled through a severe mental crisis.
The Czech poet Ivan Wernisch was so impressed by "the genius of van Ostaijen"[1] that he learned Dutch to be able to translate him. His translation was published as Tanec gnómů, Dance of the gnomes, in 1990.[2]
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