Arne Quinze (Arne Van Collie) was born on 15 December 1971. The Ghent-based artist began his career as a graffiti artist in Brussels. He evolved into conceptual art without having completed any formal art training. Arne Quinze is best known for public art installations. With his public installations, Quinze mainly strives for social interaction, communication, contrasts and contradictions.
Photo: Arne Quinze Studio
Since summer 2014, Quinze has been curator of the art project North West Walls, which is being exhibited on the Rock Werchter meadow. The artwork is a twenty-meter-high construction of sea containers. On recreation park De Schorre in Boom, he built a walking and cycling bridge and artwork One World for Tomorrowland. The bridge consists of wooden planks with carved messages from 200,000 Tomorrowland visitors. In the middle stands a steel sculpture.
Photo: Bramcoud
Arne Quinze is also known internationally: there have been exhibitions in New York, Miami, São Paolo, Milan and Verona. From February to October 2019, the exhibition “In My Secret Garden” ran in Valencia, where Quinze interacted with Santiago Calatrava’s magisterial architecture.
The Beautiful Dreamer (Paris – 2019)
Photo: Arne Quinze Studio
The Beautiful Dreamer’ is a 12m tall landmark overlooking the entrance of Paris Expo. It is Quinze’s ode to the beauty of nature and was developed to inspire visitors while triggering automatic spontaneity. “Having lost our dialogue with nature, we are now stuck with grey & uninspiring public spaces. “Le Beau Rêveur” sets out to counteract that.”
Photo: Dave Bruel
The raw power of nature is distilled in his sculpture, by repeatedly deforming sheet metal by means of a demolition crane, but the result shows a rather vulnerable elegance. Quinze tries to convey absolute beauty and sculpts his pieces in a surrealistic, abstract manner to initiate a dialogue with its visitors, forcing them to fill-in the image with their own imagination.
Photo: Arne Quinze Studio
Arne Quinze feels that it is crucial to expand and develop our cities in a closer dialogue with nature, and this project perfectly encompasses his theory. It’s about creating an ecosystem for a wide diversity of visitors, aiming for a balanced society. Arne Quinze wants his work to echo the beauty of nature in an urban context. His pieces should invite people to communicate more and better for a more human environment.
Pictures: Arne Quinze Studio
About the Author:
Bruno Dursin – Managing Director at Believe in Steel. Bruno has more than 30 years of experience in promoting steel & steel solutions. His clients benefit from his extensive network within the building industry.
