MUNICH.- “Je déteste le décor” – this remark made by Herman Daled illustrates his refusal to hang art on the wall, thereby misusing it as decoration. In 1966, the Brussels-based Belgian doctor Herman Daled (b. 1930) and his wife at that time, Nicole Verstraeten (b. 1931; lawyer), began building their collection of conceptual art. The couple did not simply purchase artists’ works, but also allowed them to create their art beyond the conventional mechanisms of the art market. Herman and Nicole Daled funded projects, financed publications and even paid artists a salary. Their principles for collecting art included: • never buy works by deceased artists • never purchase works on the secondary market • never re-sell works. Herman und Nicole Daleds’ aim was by no means just to accumulate art works. The works in their collection can be regarded as the remnants of the couple’s active participation in the local and international art scene of the late 1960s and early 1