Ontwerp voor een penning met ploegende paarden 1876 - 1947

This plaster design for a medal with ploughing horses was made by Lambertus Zijl. It’s about the size of a cookie, thick, round and biscuit-coloured, with two horses deeply carved in relief. The surface has a rough, matte texture, almost like dried clay, and the raised carving makes the scene feel tactile and immediate. You can practically feel the weight of the horses and the earth they are tilling. Look closely at the lines around the horse's legs. See how the artist has scratched away the material to define the shapes? It's this kind of direct, physical engagement with the material that I find so compelling. I imagine Zijl working intuitively, letting the material guide him, allowing the image to emerge from the plaster. It reminds me of some early modernist sculptors, like Constantin Brancusi, who sought to capture the essence of form through simplified, elemental shapes. And, like Brancusi’s work, this piece finds beauty in simplicity.