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Two reclining figures on a Calder base (sculpture for Middelheim)

2006 - 2018

Peter Rogiers

Two bright blue figures balance on a pedestal. The title “Two Reclining Figures on a Calder Base (sculpture for Middelheim),” betrays Peter Rogiers’s love of art history. Reclining figures in Western artistic tradition usually refer to reclining female nudes, but in Rogiers’s work they become strange, stretched figures that seem to be dancing or fighting with each other. For the striking colors and shapes, the artist finds inspiration in comics. The title also refers to artist Alexander Calder’s mobiles, which inspired the plinth.

© Peter Rogiers. Photo: Tom Cornille

Details

  • Plan number: M32
  • Zone: Human Nature
  • Title: Two reclining figures on a Calder base (sculpture for Middelheim)
  • Creator: Peter Rogiers , Jo Van Geert
  • Date: 2006 - 2018
  • Material: bronze, steel, lacquer paint
  • Acquisition: purchase
  • Object number: MID.B.513.A

This artwork depicts the tension in human relationships. The rhythmic movement of the two figures can depict both a dance and a struggle. The question here is just who is leading and who is led, or who wins and who loses.

Peter Rogiers occupies a unique place in Belgian contemporary sculpture. He seeks out both the future and the past of sculpture. The artist combines a rather classical sense of craft with a thorough knowledge of contemporary visual culture and an idiosyncratic handling of tradition.

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