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Jochem van den Wijngaard’s (1996) artistic practice is interdisciplinary and experimental, with an inquisitive approach as a common thread. The questions he asks himself are critical of our systems and culture. In this endeavour, art can provide a certain sense of poetization. A quality the artist realises through his fascination for craftsmanship.
For Prospects he created a new work to examine how we perceive traumatic events from the past and how these influence our perspective on the future. The Event Horizon (2024-2025) is a sculpture in the shape of a stranded dredger. The work examines how we, as a society, relate to Dutch seafaring history. Among other things inspired by Ewald Vanvugt’s book Rooftstaat (robber state, 2016), Van den Wijngaard not only reflects on Dutch cultural heritage, but also on his own cultural identity as a Dutchman.
The ship looks dilapidated, like a ghostly apparition from days long gone, while many of the materials he used are actually contemporary: twill fabric, epoxy, plaster, and neon light. The combination of modern materials and historical references turns the dredger into a ghostlike, almost surrealistic sculpture. The past appears to have literally become stranded in the present. The work expresses a sense of sorrow, something the artist himself experienced too during the past year. Because although Van den Wijngaard’s works focus on important themes, they also always reflect his own internal world.
Text: Esmee Postma
Translated from Dutch by Marie Louise Schoondergang (The Art of Translation)