Johan Creten | Naked Roots

Under the title ‘Naked Roots’, Museum Beelden aan Zee displays a selection of fifty sculptures in clay and bronze, many of which are monumental, by the Belgian artist Johan Creten. With both earlier and more recent works, this exhibition provides the visitor with the opportunity to gain a broad overview of his rich oeuvre. The symbolic title refers not only specifically to the basis of Creten’s sculptures, but also to more general themes such as origins, the place of the individual in history, and human relationships.

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Johan Creten

Naked Roots

Jun 1 — Sep 30, 2018 | Museum Beelden aan Zee, The Hague, The Netherlands

Under the title ‘Naked Roots’, Museum Beelden aan Zee will display a selection of fifty sculptures in clay and bronze, many of which are monumental, by the Belgian artist Johan Creten. With both earlier and more recent works, this exhibition provides the visitor with the opportunity to gain a broad overview of his rich oeuvre. The symbolic title refers not only specifically to the basis of Creten’s sculptures, but also to more general themes such as origins, the place of the individual in history, and human relationships.

The New York Times correctly described Johan Creten as an artist who was able to take ceramics out of the traditional conventions and help them gain a leading position in the fieldof contemporary art. He has used clay and ceramics since the 1980s in a highly original, personal way, and this has resulted in sculptural works with a deep conceptual basis. Clay is no longer le parent pauvre (the poor relation), but a material that has a serious artistic aura and limitless new possibilities.