Sculpture: Old man on bench, 1970
Material: Bronze
Dimensions/height: 1.20 m (no plinth)
Location: Burgemeester Fenemaplein
Owner: Municipality of Zandvoort
Sculptor: Kees Verkade
Closing piece
The statue ‘old man on bench’ also called ‘the shrimp fisherman’ by sculptor Kees Verkade is the final piece of the beautification fund that was established by the mayor and aldermen in 1960. In the presence of aldermen A. Kerkman, J. Lindeman, J. Oostenrijk and a large number of interested parties, the statue was unveiled by mayor Nawijn. In his speech he recalled that Zandvoort had not only thought about the reconstruction of Zandvoort that was destroyed during the war, but had also paid a lot of attention to the cultural beautification of the village. In 1988 a truck damaged the object during the world surfing championships. The statue was repaired in Brabant and then the ‘Verkadebank’ was loaned to the Sonsbeek International Art Centre. After a two-year absence, ‘the shrimp fisherman’ was placed back in its old familiar place. The life-size statue has no pedestal and simply ‘sits’ among us. Who wouldn’t be tempted to sit on the bench next to the old fisherman and gaze out over the sea together?
Kees Verkade 1941
In an old Zandvoort house in the Smedestraat, Verkade had his studio in 1965, where he made, among other things, the portrait of Sir Winston Churchill. The various exhibitions in the Galerie Eijlers in Zandvoort already showed that the young Verkade had talent. Sports and games are his great source of inspiration, but the subject of circus is also widely appreciated. His first exhibition is in the Vishal in Haarlem and the sculpture ‘mother and child’ is purchased by the Frans Halsmuseum, which also later purchases the ‘Werper’. He receives his first commission from the municipality of Haarlem, where ‘winkelen’ is placed on the corner of Grote Houtstraat. Not only Haarlem has a few sculptures, Verkade’s works of art are also well represented in the municipality of Zandvoort. Since 1970, Verkade’s monumental works can be found all over the world, from New York to Nice and from Monaco to Maastricht.