De Onbekende Beeldhouwer (the Anonymous Sculptor) is an artist or group of artists known for work on street sculptures in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

through the 1980s and 1990s. At least eight works that attracted public interest have been so attributed, including "The Violinist" (1991), which can be seen at the

Stopera The Stopera is a building complex in Amsterdam, Netherlands, housing both the city hall of Amsterdam and the Dutch National Opera and Ballet (formerly Het Muziektheater), the principal opera house in Amsterdam that is home of Dutch National Ope ...

in Amsterdam.

Identity

The sculptor's identity (or possibly identities) has remained unknown. The suspects have included Gene Holt, an American sculptor, who denied his involvement in 2013, and the former Queen

Beatrix of the Netherlands Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as List of monarchs of the Netherlands, Queen of the Netherlands from 30 April 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix was born ...

. It has been stated by the

Government of Amsterdam A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a m ...

that the sculptor is a medical person of note, who wishes to remain anonymous.

The Breast Plate

"The Breast Plate" is a small sculpture of a hand on a woman's breast, located between the stones at

Oudekerksplein The Oudekerksplein () is a square in the centre of Amsterdam. It is named after the 14th-century church Oude Kerk which dominates the square. The Oudekerksplein is wedged between the Warmoesstraat street and Oudezijds Voorburgwal canal. From th ...

. It is the fourth piece of art made by the anonymous artist and gives the best clue as to who this artist is. It appeared suddenly in the middle of the city at the end of February 1993, but within a week it was removed by the government. This turned out to be easier said than done, as the sculpture was fixed to one meter's depth of concrete. There were several reasons for the removal: the sculpture was causing a lot of noise when people stepped on it, there was no permit for its placement, and its subject was deemed "inappropriate" for the middle of the red light district. After a public announcement that the statue would not be replaced, the sculptor presented himself at the Amsterdam department of art. It was decided that the statue would be returned to its place with some additional insulation to decrease the noise. The city agreed to keep the identity of the sculptor secret, and since July 1993, the sculpture can be appreciated at its original location at Oudekerksplein.

Main attributed works

*"The Blue Fiddler", 1982, Raampoort, Amsterdam *"The Tree Saw", 1989,

Leidseplein Leidseplein (English: Leiden Square) is a square in central Amsterdam, Netherlands. It lies in the Weteringschans neighborhood ( Centrum borough), immediately northeast of the Singelgracht. It is located on the crossroads of the Weteringschans ...

, Amsterdam *"With Nose in Books", 1990,

Velsen Velsen () is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is located on both sides of the North Sea Canal. On the north side of the North Sea Canal there is a major steel plant, Tata Steel IJmuiden, formerly known as ...

*"The Violinist", 1991,

, Amsterdam *"The Breast Plate, or Streaked Breast", 1993,

, Amsterdam *"The Accordion Player", 1994, Anjeliersstraat 175, Amsterdam *"Three Dandies in Conversation", 1995, Kinkerstraat, Amsterdam *"The Nun", 1999,

Amersfoort Amersfoort () is a Cities of the Netherlands, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht, Netherlands. As of 31 January 2023, the municipality had ...

(since 2007, Stadhuisplein) Section translated from the Dutch Wikipedia page.

References

Anonymous artists 1980s sculptures 1990s sculptures Dutch contemporary art Sculptures in the Netherlands Artists from Amsterdam 20th-century Dutch sculptors Year of birth unknown See also :nl:De Onbekende Beeldhouwer and :commons:Anonymous sculptor#mw-subcategories. {{Netherlands-sculptor-stub