Successor

2023

80 x 50 x 215 cm
Bronze, concrete

Regret, disappointment, shame. All this can be deduced from the way the head hangs, those sloped shoulders and the rag doll as a last vestige. Although Successor is a minimalist sculpture – there is no face with sad eyes or a pouty lip, and it even lacks fingers – it’s enormously expressive. It’s an archetype that is universally recognisable and that everyone can identify with.

Everyone except its creator Joep van Lieshout that is. He knows no shame and considers regret a waste of time. He has to save the world with an overwhelming gesture, crush enemies, leave indelible marks and write history. Yet this sad little man with his shapeless cuddly toy appears again and again in his sketchbooks. As if it worms its way out of the artist’s subconscious through the pencil onto the paper. As Successor – descendant or heir – he takes on the emotions foreign to his creator.

Successor (2023) was part of the following exhibition(s):
Beeldengallerij Haarlem, Haarlem (NL), 2023 – 2025

For enquiries: please contact Atelier Van Lieshout via info@ateliervanlieshout.com