Nello en Patrasche
Yvonne Bastiaens
1985
Details
- Collection: Hoboken, Folkloric sculptures, The collection, Animal sculpture
- Material: bronze
- Acquisition method: acquisition
- Object number: KIS.0240
Nello en Patrasche (Nello and Patrasche), a bronze work by Yvonne Bastiaens from 1985, is located in Hoboken. The sculpture depicts the two main characters from the novel A Dog of Flanders by Marie Louise de la Ramée, also known as Ouida. The story takes place in a village near Antwerp, Hoboken, and centres on the orphan boy Nello and his faithful dog Patrasche. Another depiction of this folk tale can be found at Antwerp’s Handschoenmarkt, in the shadow of the cathedral.
The story of Nello and his dog became particularly popular in Japan. The statue in Hoboken was unveiled in 1985 by the then Japanese ambassador Shizuhiko Yamamoto and the then mayor of Antwerp, Bob Cools. Nello, depicted wearing clogs, strokes the head of his faithful companion Patrasche.
Yvonne Bastiaens (1931–2010) worked as an employee at the former municipality of Hoboken and only began her art studies later in life. From 1973 to 1987, she took evening classes at the Royal Academy of Antwerp. She later specialised in ceramics and had a passion for creating animal sculptures.
