The Quiet View

A permanent installation for Herkenrode
'The Silent View' is a permanent work of art that guides the viewer through a long corridor to an observation room where he can comfortably take a seat. Through a large window section he can look out over a landscape sculpted on a scale. That landscape seems very deep thanks to an optical illusion constructed over a dozen meters in which the perspective is manipulated step by step. Mirrors on both sides of the landscape make it optically endless.
The spectator is offered a view on an interpretation of a water feature with rocky islands and bare trees. If the spectator is receptive to himself, such as for the illusion of a landscape painting, this undeniably fictional outdoor space becomes a true experience.
This soft gray landscape is sober and serene, it invites the spectator to stare at the depth and disappear in a moment of reflection, introspection, as one can experience when staring at the sea or a mountain valley.
It is no coincidence that this work, which is exactly on the site where the abbey church once stood, has a spiritual dimension. The artist conceived this quiet space as a place for meditation, entirely in line with the idea of ​​an abbey site.
In addition to Op de Beeck's large permanent installation 'Location (5)' (2004) in the Towada Art Center in Japan, this is his second monumental, experiential work of art that gets a permanent composition and opening up.