Dirix, Jos

Each sculpture by Jos Dirix is the epicentre of a potent field of force. The sheer power of the bull, the life force of a young foal in the meadow or the ecstatic power of the female figure, whatever inner fire animates the creatures depicted, Jos Dirix solidifies into bronze. And that makes each sculpture into a fascinating snapshot.
Dirix’s sculptures keep giving back the energy that was put into them. That goes for the movement in which they are caught, as well as for their annealed bronze surface. After casting, the hot bronzes are immersed in water.

In the thermal violence that follows, the fire precipitates on the outer skin of the bronze, which is then left like that. Thus it appears as if every sculpture by Dirix still glows with fire – the fire of the foundry, but also the fire of emotion and spontanety that Dirix puts into his works. He is a true equilibrist when it comes to balancing spontaneous processes with the discipline of his vision of the final result. In this way, sculptures are created full of sublimated tension, in which the power of the mind parries even gravity itself.