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A new series of large scale sculptures by Ernest Bessems titled ‘Seven Sins’ will be presented at the Art Chapel in Amsterdam

by Doron Beuns

For this body of work Bessems translated the seven deadly sins that originate from Christian theology into seven respective sculptures that are complimented by sound fragments, drawings and performances. As with previous sculptures, Bessems explores the magnitude and intensity of experiencing things in our inner lives. With this particular exhibition we see how his larger than live figures grapple with pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath and sloth. 2023 years after the world’s most famous crucifixion, these vices still overshadow the more secular phase of our civilization. Like a present-day delegate of  Hyronymus Bosch, Bessems aestheticises our tendency towards depravity and illicit behaviour. We find ourselves in a desecrated Art chapel with crude looking giants, that are stuck in their profane ways. Mud-made monsters that have lost their capacity to wash away their sins. A timeless metaphor that still applies to our present human condition.

Ernest Bessems

Ernest Bessems

This is not to say that the final conclusion of this exhibition points us towards doom and gloom. Yes, unfortunately our worst ways are here to stay. Our sinful nature is not going anywhere anytime soon. However, with his work Bessems exemplifies an important alternative to giving up on moral virtue, namely the act of ‘sublimation’. The ‘Mud made monsters’ we cultivate inside ourselves could in fact generate a redeeming force. Sloth i.e. Laziness could free up space for new thought.Experiencing gluttony can help us to set meaningful boundaries in our quest for a more balanced life. Wrath, envy, greed an even pride could even motivate us to improve our present conditions and direct surroundings. The centrifugal force of being trapped in a viscous cycle is a grand and powerful thing. We feel it in the scale and roughness of these sculptures, in the gestural choreography of the performance but above all in the circular space of Amsterdam’s Art Chapel. So help us God to utilise our untameable impulses.

Ernest Bessems

Ernest Bessems

Ernest Bessems

About Ernest Besems
Ernest Besems (1996) is a Dutch artist that works across sculpture, drawing, painting and  performance. After finalising his architecture degree Bessems continued to work on the scale of architecture but predominantly shifted to the form of the human figure. In his practice this human figure represents an organic and emotional intervention in a built environment that is marked architectural perfection and indifference. Bessems currently works and lives in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

The exhibition will take place the 17th till the 19th of February in the Art Chapel in Amsterdam.

All images > Credits Kees Willems

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