| | | | KATRIEN VAN DER SCHUEREN AT ONNA HOUSE |
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| | | | Katrien Van Der Schueren Unveils The Ark of Us: Fragmented Whole Curio Collection at Onna House East Hampton |
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| | | | A new body of sculptural works inspired by the 17th-century Wunderkammer explores memory, materiality, and discovery at Onna House East Hampton, on view through September 2026. |
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| | | | On view through September 2026, Belgian-born, Los Angeles-based sculptural artist Katrien Van Der Schueren presents The Ark of Us: Fragmented Whole Curio Collection at Onna House East Hampton. Transforming an entire room into a contemporary cabinet of curiosities, the immersive installation brings together sculpture, architecture, and participation in an exploration of memory, preservation, materiality, and human connection. Drawing inspiration from the mythological ark as a vessel of preservation, The Ark of Us explores humanity's enduring impulse to discover, protect, and pass meaning forward. Conceived as a contemporary interpretation of the seventeenth-century Wunderkammer, the collection is composed of hand-sculpted reliefs carved in a primal visual language rooted in our shared ancestry. Built from individual blocks that together form fragmented wholes, reflecting the memories, experiences, and narratives that shape human identity. The installation invites visitors into a living archive where sculpture becomes an evolving experience rather than a static object. Hidden compartments embedded throughout the works function as intimate treasure boxes, encouraging visitors to contribute memories, stories, hopes, and keepsakes. Through this act of participation, the installation continuously evolves, blurring the boundaries between artist, artwork, and audience. |
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| | | | Photographer: Ylva Erevall |
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| | | | Refusing to be confined to a single medium, Katrien combines wood, plaster, stone, bronze, brass, resin, and pigments in richly textured compositions shaped through carving, burning, and transformation. Approaching materials as collaborators rather than tools, she allows each to contribute its own history, texture, and character to the work. The murals are carved from a fast-regenerating hardwood, while innovative bronze-skin techniques using bronze powder, resin, and binders reflect her ongoing exploration of material possibilities and alternatives to traditional casting methods. |
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| | | | Photographer: Rodrigo Rize |
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| | | | Photographer: Rodrigo Rize |
| | Photographer: Rodrigo Rize |
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| | | | Central to Katrien's practice is the belief that sculpture should be experienced through more than sight alone. Richly textured surfaces, concealed objects, and hidden compartments invite touch, curiosity, and discovery, encouraging viewers to engage with the work both physically and emotionally. "Human beings have always built arks-not just physical ones, but emotional and cultural ones," says Katrien. "We save photographs, letters, stories, recipes, songs, and objects because we're constantly trying to preserve what matters before time carries it away. The Ark of Us explores that universal impulse. Hidden compartments embedded throughout the work invite people to leave behind fragments of themselves-memories, stories, hopes, and secrets-allowing the sculpture to become a living archive shaped by many hands and many lives. I like to think of it as collective memory disguised as sculpture." |
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| | | | About Katrien Van Der Schueren Katrien Van Der Schueren is a self-taught Belgian-born sculptural artist based in Los Angeles whose work explores memory, materiality, and human connection through immersive, tactile experiences. Approaching sculpture as a spatial intervention, Katrien creates multi-material, layered works that invite discovery, participation, and a renewed sense of wonder. Rooted in the universal language of touch and feel, her practice seeks to connect viewers to their shared humanity through forms that are at once ancient and contemporary. Material exploration lies at the heart of Katrien's process. Working directly with wood, stone, clay, plaster, resin, metal, hemp, and other unconventional materials, she builds and carves surfaces through layering, transformation, and subtraction, often combining multiple crafts within a single work. Treating materials as collaborators rather than tools, she embraces experimentation and allows each medium to contribute its own character, history, and expression. Sought after for her ability to transform architectural and spatial environments, Katrien's works transcend the boundaries of sculpture, design, and installation, creating immersive narratives that encourage curiosity, connection, and participation. |
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