The exhibition depicts a series of figures held within cage-like frames. These frames represent the limits, laws, and social rules that shape our societies, standing in tension with the individual longing of the figures for autonomy, growth, and a simpler way of being. At once protective and restrictive, the paradox of these frames lies in humanity’s urge to improve and control life, while making it increasingly complex to navigate the experiences that define existence: togetherness, freedom and love.
Burger of Calais II is the atelier’s interpretation of Auguste Rodin’s The Burghers of Calais (1889), which captured the despair and courage of the citizens of Calais in the face of death. Joep van Lieshout has sculpted these burghers to consider contemporary ideas of heroism and honour of those willing to sacrifice themselves for their ideals. The artist’s dialogue with sacrifice is continues through Backpack, a love letter to the felled fighters who rest in the Champs-Élysées, the final resting place of warriors in Greek mythology. The backpack viewed as a warrior’s essential arsenal, the ultimate survival kit and a necessity for going rogue to win wars or start a new life. Surrender is reflected by The Caretakers and Maria’s Cloak, not as defeat but as a gesture of care, devotion and remembrance.
In Sculptures of Humanity, Atelier Van Lieshout questions the world that we have created. These depictions of humanness, the urge to fight for our ideals and the systems that shape our societies, define his work. The multidisciplinary practice of Atelier Van Lieshout produces works on the borders between art, design, and architecture, projects that vary size, scale, and context yet always mirror or anticipate the future of our world while revealing the artist’s longing for sacred bonds and the simpler times of by-gone eras.
