Fountain, 2003, Zeeburgerdijk, Amsterdam
Commissioned by city of Amsterdam, originally as a landmark for a new, ecologically built residential area. The man in the sculpture has been modelled after art collector Otto Schaap. Only after the fountain had been installed, Otto Schaap realized his portrait was positioned exactly on the spot his father worked as a surgeon during the war in an emergency hospital.
The sculpture won the Amsterdamse Straatkunstprijs 2011, an award for art in public space.
Monkey‘s Table, Zoutkeetsplein Amsterdam
Monkey‘s Table, Zoutkeetsgracht Amsterdam, 2006, bronze and stainless steel
The monkeys differ in size, color and style. The tallest one represents a Japanese macaque and is executed in Amsterdam school style, the Dutch version of Art Deco. The small, standing one is a gorilla, executed in nickel–plated science fiction style, the spider monkey has been designed in Etruscan style and patinated green-blue.
The sculpture has been commissioned by Stadsdeel Westerpark and relates to another sculpture based upon a table by Alfons ter Avest , just around the corner.
Balancing Act, AMC Amsterdam
Untitled, Bascule, Amsterdam Medical Centre AMC Amsterdam, 2009, mixed media, 20,2 x 2,5 x 1,7 m, commissioned by AMC Amsterdam with match funding from Amsterdams Fonds
The AMC is one of the largest hospital buildings in Europe. Its massive building from the early 80s, -with over 50 km of corridors- houses the biggest public art collection in the Netherlands. Read more here. Really worth a visit when the museums are closed, the hospital is open 24/7.
The Bascule is part of the AMC Hospital and is dedicated to youth psychiatric daycare.
The 20 m high sculpture tower, situated next to the elevator shaft, contains a random selection of objects, including animals and people, all trying to keep their balance. The theme is referring to the very act of balancing one’s own life, which is constantly exposed to a lot of
(Bascule means balance but I only realized that when the sculpture was installed)
Article by Janneke Wesseling (pg 28-29)
Original sketch and maquette for the Bascule tower
Left: maquette with matchboxman, pistacchio-and peelman, cornman, right: executed artwork
Mobile sculpture for Medisch Spectrum Twente (MST), a giant hospital complex, 2015, painted metals, 11 x 10 x 8 m. All elements are mobile and slowly change position. Left: maquette, right, detail published on the cover of an edition of Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde (Dutch magazine on medicine)