by Ek van Zanten
Rotterdam, 1970
Washington, 1971
Approx. 240/200 cm
Ek was commissioned to create a monument, a sculpture commemorating the deadly flood disaster in 1953.
He went to see how dikes were repaired and built: mattresses of willow branches, to anchor the dike to the ground, were made on the seabed and then covered with large stones. All by hand.
Two men carrying stone by stone while a line of men ensures that the mattresses of willow branches and the stones remain on the ground. Later, a dike would be built on top of them. This technique is still used in the 21st century, because willow branches never die.
The embassy in Washington has a sculpture similar to the one in Rotterdam, Maashaven, with a few differences. It is a typical Dutch subject, the battle against high waterlevels.
