René Rosseel, 1985
About the artist:
René Rosseel (1950) is a Belgian sculptor, born in Bruges, who studied at the Municipal Academy in Bruges. However, the versatile artist worked not only as a sculptor, but also as a painter, a calligrapher and a stonemason.
Rosseel was always interested in different kinds of visual art. He delved into the art of stone carving at the workshops of Corsanini and he also took up classes of bronze casting at Tornasi in Carrara. Furthermore, he was a master guest at the Sergeys bell foundry in Leuven and now lives and works in Mechelen. In Leuven you can find his sculptures “De Dijle-eend” and “Erasmus”.
Rosseels “De Witte” is based on a character from Ernest Claes’ novel Whitey, which is set in the year 1901 in a village called Zichem. At that time, socialism was growing and peasants in the poor Belgian Kempen could barely live on their incomes. The main character in the story is Louis Verheyden, a young man, also known as “de Witte van Zichem”, who continuously makes mischief and plays jokes on everyone.
Regarding his sculptures, Rosseel works with a variety of materials, ranging from wood and clay to bronze and stone. Photos of his studio and his finished pieces can be found at https://renerosseel.be/.
Selection of other works:
1978:
“Suske en Wiske”
Antwerp
1979:
“Erasmus”
Mechelsestraat, Leuven
2003:
“De Dijle-eend”
Redingenstraat, Leuven
