Melrose Wing of International Art: Plain English Tour
Work 4 of 17

Berlinde De Bruyckere was born in 1964 in Ghent, Belgium.

She is famous for her life-like sculptures of animals and people.

Her sculptures look like they are out of shape and have pieces missing.

Berlinde makes her sculptures from different materials, such as:

- wax

- wood

- iron

- wool

- hair

- horse skin.

Berlinde’s works bring you face to face with:

- suffering

- birth

- death

- change

- memory.

There is also beauty and warmth in her sculptures.

In 1999, Berlinde did research for the In Flanders Fields Museum in Belgium.

It is a museum about the First World War.

She was made sad by seeing photographs of dead horses killed in the war.

Berlinde often makes horse sculptures.

She hopes that once people stop thinking about her sculpture as ‘real’ horse,

it will then make them think about their feelings, problems and fears.

This sculpture is called We are all flesh.

It is of two horses stuck together.

They are out of shape and they have no heads or faces.

Some people feel horror

when they look at the sculpture.

But Berlinde made the work in a kind and caring way.

Berlinde works with an animal hospital in her hometown.

When a horse dies, the vet calls Berlinde.

She makes moulds from the horse to build the different shapes.

Then these are covered in horse skins.

The horse skins come from a tanner,

a person who works with animal skins.