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26 Graziella Curreli. Kenau's face in pr
ORIGINAL WAX
Graziella Curreli, Working on Kenau in b
THE BOW, Chiseling, by Graziella Curreli
Born in Paris in December 1960.

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In 1994, after graduating in literature (Sorbonne) and 15 years of teaching, she moves to the Netherlands, studies sculpture with Karel Gomes, the craft of mould making and bronze casting with Fred Steffens and, in 1999, upon her return from one year trip in the US, she becomes a full time sculptor!Year 2000… First exhibition.

 

Since then, her statues never stop circulating, in The NL and internationally, in Europe and in the US. On a regular basis, numerous Art Merchants and Galleries contribute to the promotion of her Art: Peter Pappot (Amsterdam), E.J. van Wisselingh & Co (Haarlem), J. C Dumas (Paris), Smelik & Stokking (Amsterdam, Den Haag), Ton Schulten (Ootmarsum), and E. King (Napa Valley, California) and more…

 

Her bronzes enter Auction Houses and appear in prestigious Art Fairs such as Pan Amsterdam, Kunst Rai and Den Bosch Art Fair.

 

With encouraging regularity she serves private customers creating garden statues, grave monuments, trophies, awards and commemorative statues.In 2006 for the first time, her art attracts the interest of the Municipality of Haarlem, the City where she lives and works in her Atelier Gallery of the Kleine Houtstraat.

 

For her City she designs and realizes a Kenau for the Emancipatieprijs Award and a Lieven de Key for an Architecture Award, a medal now permanently displayed in the Teylers Museum, as part of their coins and medals collection.

 

In 2010, Haarlem commissions her a monumental bronze representing two heroes of the “80 Years War”, Kenau Hasselaer and Governor Wigbolt. Ripperda. Since April 2013, it majestically stands, 4 meter tall, on the newly renovated railway Station Square, while the 30 cm original design is exhibited in the Historisch Museum Haarlem, with the following title: Kenau & Ripperda, from Motivation to Inspiration, a pro-peace monument.

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Her inspiration comes from the people and returns to them. She is a Humanist sculptor.

 

"I use the incarnated body to sculpt experiences. Love, desire, self-esteem, courage, audacity, generosity, surprise, affection, inspiration, clarity, interest and the unlimited range of experiences a human being can have. It is as if experiences have to run through the body in order to reach the soul. I observe and sculpt the visible to access the invisible!

 

When I was commissioned The Kenau & Ripperda monumental bronze, I intended to create a pro-peace monument for my City. I turned 2 historical figures involved in a war into allegorical figures representative of an inner journey anyone can take. By going from Motivation (fighting the un-wanted) to Inspiration (focus on the wanted) the 2 figures were created to embody 2 steps in a journey towards peace. Standing side by side, looking in the same direction, Kenau Hasselaer and Governor W. Ripperda accomplish the spichological exploit of conquering themselves!

Excellence and exclusivity
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From order to delivery:
- an interior piece (around 50 cm) will require between 600-800 hours to complete
- a garden piece (around 1.5 meter) will require between 1500 to 2000 hours to complete
- a monumental piece (3 meters?) will require an ?  amount of time to complete (!)
To the customer and commissioner, invitation will be sent
- to follow, step by step, the 'hidden life' of their statue
- to discuss and make definite decision  regarding, for instance, the Patina
- to collect a handwritten Authenticity Certificate which will be of value when the sculpture will meet situations like successions, Auction House or Gallery selling or any other ways a valuable bronze sculpture might be changing ownership.
 
For the commissioner, excellence and exclusivity commitment means and grants their piece is absolutely uniquely made!
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Involvement with 'the technical'
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Like the medieval and renaissance mind, I see ‘art’ as creativity AND craftsmanship combined.
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In the name of quality, even before I considered casting any of my sculptures in bronze, I knew I had to learn and be part of the entire process: mould making, wax casting, creating the investment mould, casting, welding, chasing and chiseling, applying the patina's and even mounting my sculptures onto marble bases, when appropriate. I found my first bronze master the day I could make this deal with him: I work for you, without pay, for a minimum of one year with the condition that you teach me all you know. The day after, I started by servicing one of his customers with the making of a silicone mould and soon after, I was gifted my own first metal grinder. The variety of tasks I was asked to complete constituted the best school I could possibly dream of! My knowledge and experience grew further while working on my own bronzes but also taking part in several foundry projects. A remarkable one was being invited by Jaap Kijnstra to take part in a full study on Patina he was conducting for his foundry in Amsterdam.
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The other reason I wanted to undertake the technical duties was that I wanted to be able to know how to appreciate the difference between alloys, judge the quality of a cast, its chiseling, its patina and claim, for my creations and my customers, the highest possible standards.
Finally, by doing everything myself, I was able to give my sculptures all the time and attention they might require to offer the highest possible quality.
 
A bronze sculpture exists in a timeline that surpasses my and my customer’s life span...
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We are dealing with legacy!
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