Portfolio Category: cycle route

OLYMPISCHE RINGEN

OLYMPISCHE RINGEN

OLYMPISCHE RINGEN (HUGO VAN DER WILT) At the Sports Hall 'De Klavers' the symbol of the Olympic idea is really in its proper place. The artist has shaped it into a large three-dimensional sculpture. The rings, made of stainless steel, are loosely stacked on top of each other and appear to be floating. In a…

DE KLOKKENLAPPER

DE KLOKKENLAPPER

DE KLOKKENLAPPER (KOEN ROSSAERT) This folkloric figure refers to a mockery of the fooled inhabitants of Belsele. A tinker claimed he could repair the cracked church bell with gold and silver. The gullible villagers provided him with the precious metal but the man hastily disappeared. The sculptor succeeded in raising the popular and anecdotal nature…

DE WASSENDE VROUWEN

DE WASSENDE VROUWEN

DE WASSENDE VROUWEN (DORA DE CONINCK) With nostalgia, the artist looks back to a rural world where the village community was still a closely knit unit. Two women stand near the pump and water tank, their eyes fixed on the laundry they are wringing. Their headscarves are still traditional but their clothes are stylized. The…

JOHANNA EN MARGARETHA VAN CONSTANTINOPEL 1217

JOHANNA EN MARGARETHA VAN CONSTANTINOPEL 1217

JOHANNA AND MARGARETHA OF CONSTANTINOPLE 1217 ( FRANS) HEIRBAUT On the Grand Place, our attention is caught by a sculpture group with two skeletons. They evoke mixed feelings in the viewer. On closer inspection, this is a complex, daring work of art. On the occasion of the celebration of 800 years of Saint-Nicolas, Art in…

ZITTENDE VROUW

ZITTENDE VROUW

ZITTENDE VROUW (GEORGE GRARD) Grard He particularly prefers female nude bronzes . He was strongly inspired by classical French sculptors, e.g. Aristide Maillol (1861-1944). Until the mid-fifties he concentrated on full, female shapes of either sitting, reclining or standing characters. In 1958 his style took a turn with the ‘the African’ a female sculpture, exhibited…

LA TORDUE

LA TORDUE

LA TORDUE (GEORGE GRARD) ‘La Tordue’ refers to one of the earlier works of George Grard: ‘The Sea’ or ‘Lying Nude’ in Ostend. The latter statue (1952-1955) is nicknamed ‘Fat Mathilda’ by the locals and symbolizes the lushness and sensuality of the sea in a woman's body. Over the years ‘Fat Mathilda’ was regularly waylaid…

GERARD GAUDAEN

GERARD GAUDAEN

GERARD GAUDAEN (WINKE BESARD) We can admire the statue of Gerard Gaudaen. Gerard Gaudaen was born in Sint-Niklaas in 1927 and died in his home city in 2003. He was a famous Belgian specialist of lino cut, wood engraving and bookplates (ex-LIBRIS). He was an arts teacher at the Royal Athenaeum of Sint-Niklaas and later, as…

UILENSPIEGEL

UILENSPIEGEL

UILENSPIEGEL (MARK MACKEN) At the opposite side of the city park, on the corner of the August Nobelsstraat, is the bronze statue of ‘Tijl Uilenspiegel’. This playful hero of a popular old folk tale frolics and plays practical jokes. His name is a combination of ‘uil (owl)’ and ‘spiegel (mirror)’. The owl, not to be…

GILGAMESJ EN ISJTAR

GILGAMESJ EN ISJTAR

GILGAMESH AND ISHTAR (PAUL VAN GYSEGEM) The mythological figures of the Mesopotamia are impressive creations, roughly sculpted, born in a crucible of fire and glowing bronze. Ishtar, the archetype of the 'Great Mother', possesses dark powers but is worshipped as the goddess of love and fertility. Gilgamesh, the ‘Hero’, is afraid of death. He strives…

PASTOOR GORDIJN

PASTOOR GORDIJN

PASTOOR GORDIJN (AUGUST NOBELS) Large school buildings, a parish hall and a home for the elderly flank the wide Hofstraat. There, close to the statue of Our Lady Mary, in all its simplicity, is the portrait of Pastor Gordijn (1862-1939) located. Gordijn was vicar of the Onze-Lieve-Vrouw parish. He succeeded the socially committed vicar Petrus…

DE WEG NAAR KENNIS

DE WEG NAAR KENNIS

DE WEG NAAR KENNIS (ROBERT VANDEREYCKEN) The artist Robert Vandereycken is not only a sculptor, but also a graphic designer, which clearly shows in this work ‘De weg naar kennis - The way to knowledge’. He appears to be making a three-dimensional transformation of a stylized drawing. He simplifies and structures the volumes, delineates the…

BUSTE PROS MATTHYS

BUSTE PROS MATTHYS

BUST PROS MATTHYS (FRANS HEIRBAUT) As an alderman, Pros Matthys was a thoroughgoing man. And he was not at his trial. As Alderman for Culture of Sint-Niklaas, he took a bold initiative in 1973. He was the creator and founder of the Foundation for Art in the City. As a result, dozens of artworks have…

IN DE WOLKEN

IN DE WOLKEN

IN THE CLOUDS (FRENCH HEIRBAUT) High on the pedestal, a little boy climbs to the sky while his playmate looks on. The bronze sculpture appears weightless. The scene is agile, playful, optimistic and emphasizes the carefree nature of youth. While one is scrambling up the unstable rope ladder, the other boy reaches out a helping…

MEISJE MET ZOMERHOED

MEISJE MET ZOMERHOED

MEISJE MET ZOMERHOED (ALBERT TERSAGO) To Albert Tersago observation of the visual as well as the emotional reality is paramount. Hereby people, in all their diversity, are an endless source of inspiration. He is aware of the fact that turning these observations into sculptures requires expertise: throughout the years he studies the secrets of the…

ANTON VAN WILDERODE

ANTON VAN WILDERODE

ANTON VAN WILDERODE (WILFRIED PAS) On the corner of the Collegestraat we can see the porch of theRecollects church, adjacent to the Recollects friars’ convent, who had to flee Hulst in 1646. The church was built in a Baroque style and was completed in 1696. Later, and up to this day, the convent buildings accommodate…

MARIABEELD

MARIABEELD

MARIABEELD (FRANS VAN HAVERMAET) To the left of the entrance to ‘Het Hof’, a home for the elderly, you’ll find a neoclassical statue depicting Our Lady, made of French sandstone. It dates from the late nineteenth century (1876). The statue used to stand over the main entrance gate to the Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-Presentatie School, in the Plezantstraat.…

CIRKEL IN CIRKEL

CIRKEL IN CIRKEL

CIRCLE IN CIRCLE (HILDE VAN SUMERE) 'Cirkel in cirkel (Circle within circle)’ is a monumental work, standing out with its large size and striking colour. That’s why it dominatess the busy roundabout on one of the main access roads to the city centre of Sint-Niklaas. Hilde Van Sumere’s entire oeuvre consists of abstract compositions, dominated…

SINT-NICOLAASBEELD

SINT-NICOLAASBEELD

SINT-NICOLAASBEELD (ACHIEL PAUWELS) At the foot of the City Hall belfry of , in the Market Square stands the impressive image of Saint Nicholas, since 1217 the patron saint of the then parish and village community. Saint Nicholas, in Flemish usually called ‘Sinterklaas’, is the celebrated children’s friend. The statue refers to the tradition concerning…

VERZOENING

VERZOENING

VERZOENING (GISLEEN HEIRBAUT) At first glance, the sculpture appears to be an abstract composition, made from a single marble block. Following the example of Brancusi, the sculptor succeeds in creating a strong work of art by leaving out details and preserving the pure form. The harmonious composition of weighed up solid and hollow parts is…

ZEEMEERMIN

ZEEMEERMIN

ZEEMEERMIN (WILLY KREITZ) By the bridge over the pond in the Romain De Vidtspark the statue of a mermaid rises from the water. With her graceful body, half woman, half fish, this mythical figure is a most endearing sight. Kreitz preferred portraying the human body, young girls, mermaids and angels. He created the deceased seafarers’…

DE SCHAAPHERDER

DE SCHAAPHERDER

DE SCHAAPHERDER (FRANS HEIRBAUT) Jozef Smekens : °Sinaai 03/11/1904 +Sint-Niklaas 05/04/1989 The shepherd and his dog… The shepherd, though small in stature, has been modelled life-size and radiates an imposing vitality. This is reflected by his striking features, quiet yet at once alert. The monumental character gains volume by the pose of the man…

ZONDER TITEL

ZONDER TITEL

ZONDER TITEL (HANNES VAN SEVEREN) At first glance, these are abandoned objects from a construction site. But the artist deliberately removes these stairs from their familiar context and places them in various places in this site, right up to the roof. This raises questions for the viewer: where do these stairs lead to? Why are…

HEMELBOOG

HEMELBOOG

HEMELBOOG (HUGO KAIRET) This square monument was installed at Ten Bos in 2011. Walkers can walk through the over four meter high artwork, made of stainless steel. Through various viewing windows one then has a view of the church and its surroundings. The artist directs the viewer's attention in a specific direction, just as a…

HET WASE AFVALMONSTER

HET WASE AFVALMONSTER

HET WASE AFVALMONSTER (SVEN DEGRIJSE) This iron rust-brown creature is an initiative of three teachers from SBSO Baken with the cooperation of pupils from fifteen schools. With its eight trunks, the monster shows itself to be a real glutton. It is designed to a giant basket for litter and roadside waste. Volunteers and youth organizations…

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