Alternative statue of Holy Trinity created on Olomouc’s Upper Square – made from sand!
The sculptor Václav Lemon has been working on Olomouc’s central square to recreate a famous Baroque depiction of the Holy Trinity, only this time not out of sandstone, but out of sand!
Olomouc’s Holy Trinity Column is an icon of the city, having stood proudly on Upper Square (Horní náměstí) since the eighteenth century. The 35-metre high column was constructed as an expression of pious thanksgiving for the end of the plague that struck Moravia between 1714 and 1716. It is adorned with rich Baroque decoration and imagery, with three levels of six statues of saints, culminating in a depiction of the Christian Holy Trinity at the very top. The base of the column is so large that it contains its very own chapel, which is open for visits seasonally.
With such a historic jewel to enjoy for free, new visitors to Olomouc may be disappointed to find out that the Holy Trinity Column is currently undergoing renovation and repairs, and is set to remain wrapped in scaffolding and sheets until 2026. Not to worry though – a smaller version has been sculpted on the square by artist Václav Lemon, using sand as his medium. This is the fourth time that sand artwork will decorate the city centre of Olomouc.
The sculptor himself described the image, and why he set to work on this particular piece of art:
“This is actually the Holy Trinity itself – that is, the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ and God the Father … I probably wouldn't have chosen it myself, because it's quite a demanding job to take on something that our ancestors did before us. Plus, everyone here in Olomouc knows it. Of course, it's through an agreement with the city.”
Passers-by on Upper Square last week would have seen only a hefty pyramid of sand, out of which Václav Lemon would then carve out his sculpture.
“We brought about 34 tons of sand. It's always nice to have a little extra. We put about 30 tons into the sculpture itself. Of course, as the work progresses, the material decreases again, so my estimate is that the sculpture may now weigh about 25 tons.”
The creation of the sand artwork has been a battle against the weather too, as summer storms threaten to wash Václav’s work away.
“It's challenging. This year's weather is especially hard on me, with the wind, the rain last week, constant storms today, and the storms yesterday. So it's mentally demanding because I have to constantly monitor the weather, because until the statue is protected, basically two or three minutes of rain are enough to wash the entire statue away … I spend twelve hours a day here, and it's twelve hours of really consistent work and consistently answering people passing by. It's very demanding at some points, but I try to answer patiently.”
The four-metre high sand statue will remain on the Upper Square until the end of October. Once completed to the artist’s satisfaction, the sand recreation of the Holy Trinity will be sprayed with a substance that holds the sand particles together. This will offer resistance against the rain – the artist and the people of Olomouc can only pray that it doesn’t hail instead.
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Olomouc Region
This region’s assets include the university town of Olomouc, the fairytale landscape of Bouzov, the spa Karlova Studánka with the cleanest air in Central Europe.
