Joseph Cals (1949) was born in Stein, at that time a small village on the Maas River in the southern part of The Netherlands, just on the border with Belgium and close to that of Germany. This region is indeed permeated with history. The earliest traces of settlements date back to 6000 B.C. As a young child he visited the excavation site. "I could easily picture the early inhabitants hunting and building fires, and I could be fascinated and roam around there for hours on end. Those quiet references to a distant past, the dark and reddish brown spots were what I had to feed my fantasy, and it was more than adequate."

Another important moment came when, at age 17, he received a scholarship to study in the United States. "It was 1967/68, a tumultuous year. War in Vietnam, race-riots in the cities, the murder of both Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy – and, paradoxically many new exciting things happening in the arts. ( Op-Art, Pop-Art, installations etc.) I lived near Buffalo N.Y. with its renowned Albright Knox Gallery. One of my teachers – Mary Jo Healy, with whom I still stay in touch – took us there. It was overwhelming. Strange as it may seem that apparent chaos of the time brought me catharsis. I decided to devote my future to Art. All these impressions fused. It became the reservoir I use to work on a major project “The Maasland Hospital”, now under construction in the area where I was born."