This abstract concrete column by artist George van der Wagt is located at the entrance of the Söderblom flat in Ombloed. The artwork was offered by Bouwmaatschappij Volker after completion of the apartment building at Söderblomplaats. This place and flat are named after the Swedish Nathan Söderblom, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1930. Artist Van der Wagt studied, worked and lived in Rotterdam, but this untitled work was his only assignment for public space. The 4.30 meter high column stands out well next to the apartment building due to its volume, but it can be seen separately from it. The surface in the porch extends below the artwork, so that the sculpture becomes part of the apartment. Van der Wagt had an interesting visual language; a powerful combination of both sculptural volumes and line formation, which gives a kind of organic variation. On August 28, 1970, the unveiling of the statue was carried out by HCGL (Minus) Polak, councilor of Rotterdam from 1966 to 1974.
George van der Wagt (Amsterdam, 1921 - Rotterdam, 2007) was a sculptor, ceramicist, painter and monumental artist. He has carried out many assignments for monumental works of art, especially for school buildings, but also for De Nederlandsche Bank, Philips, AKZO Nobel and Elsevier. The last years of his life, he focused on painting. He attended art academies in Rotterdam and Amsterdam and worked from circa 1936 to his death in 2007. In Rotterdam, he was taught from 1943 to 1945 by sculptor John Rädecker, who assisted in the realization of the National Monument on Dam Square in Amsterdam.
Percentage regulation, involved construction assignment
Owner
Property owner
About the artwork
This abstract concrete column by artist George van der Wagt is located at the entrance of the Söderblom flat in Ombloed. The artwork was offered by Bouwmaatschappij Volker after completion of the apartment building at Söderblomplaats. This place and flat are named after the Swedish Nathan Söderblom, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1930. Artist Van der Wagt studied, worked and lived in Rotterdam, but this untitled work was his only assignment for public space. The 4.30 meter high column stands out well next to the apartment building due to its volume, but it can be seen separately from it. The surface in the porch extends below the artwork, so that the sculpture becomes part of the apartment. Van der Wagt had an interesting visual language; a powerful combination of both sculptural volumes and line formation, which gives a kind of organic variation. On August 28, 1970, the unveiling of the statue was carried out by HCGL (Minus) Polak, councilor of Rotterdam from 1966 to 1974.
George van der Wagt (Amsterdam, 1921 - Rotterdam, 2007) was a sculptor, ceramicist, painter and monumental artist. He has carried out many assignments for monumental works of art, especially for school buildings, but also for De Nederlandsche Bank, Philips, AKZO Nobel and Elsevier. The last years of his life, he focused on painting. He attended art academies in Rotterdam and Amsterdam and worked from circa 1936 to his death in 2007. In Rotterdam, he was taught from 1943 to 1945 by sculptor John Rädecker, who assisted in the realization of the National Monument on Dam Square in Amsterdam.
