The artwork “Wresting from the water” at swimming pool Heersdiep in Den Helder has been stolen. The sculpture by artist Jan Dokter (1944-2002) has been at the aqua center since 2014. Last weekend – presumably in the night from Sunday to Monday – the statue was sawn off its plinth and taken away.
“What is that?”, was the first reaction of the pool’s business manager Age de Jong. “It was the first thing I heard when I arrived this morning. I immediately reported it to the municipality of Den Helder, which is the legal owner of the image.” De Jong suspects that the thieves are after the bronze. “But no idea what the price of bronze is now.”
The bronze statue with the name Getting out of the water is from 1972 and shows two characters holding on to an anchor. The statue used to be located at the shopping center in De Schooten. At that time it was still called Peace and Freedom. In 2010, the shopping center was renovated and the artwork was placed in the municipal storage, after which it was replaced in December 2014 at the new swimming pool.
Hints?
Age de Jong of the swimming pool has already called the local hardware store to look out for the statue. “Maybe it’s offered there. Who knows?” In any case, there is still no trace of the perpetrator(s). Camera images of the swimming pool should show whether there is anything to see from possible perpetrators.
Alderman for culture Fotigui Camara is shocked by the disappearance: “We attach great importance to this image. It is an incredible pity that it is gone now.” The municipality of Den Helder has registered the sculpture with the national network of the metal recycling federation. If you have any information about the disappearance, please contact us swimming poolthe municipality or the police.