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‘The Passenger’ wooden sculpture in Mons comes to an end

17:04 12/04/2021

The monumental architectural installation ‘The Passenger’ in Mons was brought down today, ending a five-and-a-half-year run arching over the narrow Rue Nimy. The work was created by Belgian artist Arne Quinze and erected in 2015 during the European Capital of Culture celebrations.

The installation, close to the central Grand Place, was beloved by residents and visitors alike, becoming one of Mons’s most-photographed attractions. But, like his previous Brussels installations ‘Cityscape’ and ‘The Sequence’, ‘The Passenger’ was made entirely from wood and always meant to be temporary.

“As with all my temporary works, ‘The Passenger’ will not be completed until its disappearance,” Quinze said on his Instagram account. “This coming and going is an essential part of our life and the force behind our evolution.”

Still it’s difficult for people who have spent years passing under one of Quinze’s trademark public sculptures to say goodbye. The people of Mons, however, do have something to look forward to: A major retrospective of the artist’s work opens at the city’s Fine Arts Museum at the end of May.

Photo ©Nicolas Maeterlinck/BELGA

 

Written by Lisa Bradshaw