sculpture network 15th anniversary

sculpture network celebrates 15 years! Time to look back on the success story that has made our network thrive. Our chairman, Ralf Kirberg, has given some thought to the history and vision of sculpture network. Read his thoughts about the past and his wishes for the future here.

Dear readers,
 
sculpture network turns 15 today. I have the pleasure and the honour to write to you on the occasion of this anniversary. For such an original organisation as we are it is a very important milestone to celebrate.
 
What started with a small group in January 2004, now counts 1000 members and thousands of interested people all over the world.
 
I have much to tell, but I shall be brief.
 
To connect creatively with people seems difficult in my experience, however, I always hear stories which claim the opposite.  Yesterday evening, the Marketing  Director of a Hamburg publishing house told me that a small sculpture was given to a departing, deserving employee, created by a sculptor who lives in a village in Upper Bavaria.  A coincidence, I had once mentioned this sculptor in a completely different context.
 
Our motto at sculpture network: We systemise coincidence! I can give you many examples of this happening over the years - you have to believe in it and open up the opportunities.

Robert Musil said, “What remains of art? We remain changed”. A short sentence, but to the point, describing our daily activities by networking, drawing attention, encouraging reflection, provoking contradiction, enjoying the beautiful things of existence and the possibilities of our cultural world. We pave the way for each other, locally, regionally, internationally and trans-continentally.  

We experience this very significantly every year at start - our International Celebration for Contemporary Sculpture - this year on 27th January in 75 locations worldwide.  

My promise, and I am confident you would agree: the network is enormously worthwhile and brings benefits to body and mind as well as to the soul.
 
Finally, I would like to thank all of your contributors, in particular my co-founder Hartmut Stielow, and you the faithful.
 
Warm regards from Munich,

Ralf Kirberg
sculpture network Chairman