Square Island in the Lake is placed at the lowest point in The Netherlands. It consists of a deep concrete shell with a diameter of 28.5 meters, with all around rising beams on a square base. The island is connected to the banks with two bridge sections. Within architecture, the square island represents the classical, architectural task of moving from square to circle.
Year
1996
Location
Prinsenlandpark
Dimensions
52 x 52 m ∅ 28,5 m
Material
concrete, steel, stond
Client
Gemeente Rotterdam
Owner
Gemeente Rotterdam
The location
Square Island in the Lake at Rotterdam Prinsenland (1992-96) is placed at the historically lowest point in the Netherlands, over seven meters below NAP. It is an artificial island measuring over 50 by 50 meters.
Frans de Wit
Frans de Wit (Leiden, the Netherlands, 1942 – 2004) was a sculptor and landscape artist.
‘Frans de Wit was one of the best Dutch sculptors of his generation, along with Carel Visser, David van de Kop, Cornelius Rogge and Lon Pennock. He built an impressive oeuvre, which included commissions for sculptures in public spaces. For Frans de Wit, the place was the starting point for such sculptures. The dimensions ensured that the works of art were in balance with man, nature and surroundings. De Wit chose a variety of materials. It was characteristic of him that he worked these materials with his own hands – and with tools he designed himself. This working largely determined the image; it grew during the process of creation. Such projects sometimes took years to complete.’ From a lecture by art historian Jetteke Bolten Rempt.