Sculpture Park Engelbrecht

The Sculpture Park Erich Engelbrecht is located at the Château des Fougis, 03220 Thionne, department of Allier, France, and displays monumental massive steel sculptures of the German artist Erich Engelbrecht.

Sculpture Park Engelbrecht
The Blacksmith, I (Der Schmied, I)
Location within France
Establishedbetween 2002-2011
LocationChâteau des Fougis, 03220 Thionne, France
Coordinates46.427000°N 3.564566°E / 46.427000; 3.564566
CollectionsMonumental massive steel sculptures by Erich Engelbrecht & a private exhibition with previous works by the same
DirectorWaltraud Engelbrecht
Websitewww.engelbrecht.art or
www.engelbrecht.fr
Les Fougis, Thionne
Clermont
Lyon
Geneva
Grenoble
Sculpture Park in the map of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
Les Fougis, Thionne
Moulins
Vichy
Sculpture Park in the map of Allier.

In 2001, Erich Engelbrecht bought the property with the intent of installing his Sculpture Park throughout the gardens and former farming and hunting fields of Château des Fougis

On loan from a private collection, the artist - and his wife - mounted also a second exhibition in the main wing of the castle, presenting some previous works like large-format tapestries, oil paintings, small steel figures and graphics.

The open air exhibition at the Sculpture Park is open to public viewing. The indoor exhibition can only be visited following a previous private appointment.

Les Fougis (the site)

“In the 15th century, according to tradition, Les Fougis were the hunting grounds of the Bourbons. In 1495 records exist of financial payments between Duke Charles the 3rd and Hughes le Long, Lord of Fougis and provost of the Duke’s Hunting. Earlier still, there’s a reference to the Lord of Fougis in an inventory written in 1410 by Pierre Bodet for Guichard Dauphin, Lord of Jaligny. In fact, the family le Long were the registered holders of les Fougis from 1461 onwards, through squire Hugonin le Long, who was also provost of the Hunting of Pierre the 2nd. The Le Longs retained the ownership of Les Fougis until 1727, the date on which the territory was bequeathed to a nephew, Jean Berthier de Bizy. Their descendants retained it until the French Revolution. In 1802 it was bought by Antoine Clayeux, whose family owns the site to the present day.

Rebuilt at the end of the 16th century (a doorway in classic style is dated 1593) the Fougis have walls pierced with more decorative openings. A description from Nicolas de Nicolay in 1569 states ‘fort chasteau, terre et seigneurie…’ (strong castle, land and lordship...)

The château is composed of a main rectangular building, flanked by two square towers on its southwest and northeast corners, and a round tower to the southeast. A second perpendicular wing to the north is also flanked by another square tower on its east corner. The walls are made of red and dark brown brickwork, paired to form lozenge patterns. The openings are framed with white limestone. The north façade and some windows to the other sides were modified throughout the end of the 19th century.”[1]

At the turn of the 19th to the 20th centuries, the house was completely renovated and remodelled. The main courtyard received arcades on both wings, one of them with a glazed loggia. The north wing became an extra floor for the extended family and services. The interiors present a language typical for the period.

After acquiring the property, Erich Engelbrecht undertook a multitude of renovation and building works on the fields and buildings to adapt Les Fougis for these exhibitions.

Some of his family members settled in Fougis, where they presently live and work.

Erich Engelbrecht (the artist)

Erich Engelbrecht (Bielefeld, 27 October 1928 - Vichy, France, 21 July 2011) was a German artist who left a multitude of works in the fields of painting, graphics, tapestry, sculpture, architecture and poetry.

Here is a selection of dates on Erich Engelbrecht's bio:

1928 Born on 27 October in Bielefeld, Germany.
1949-54 Studied Electrical Technology and different subjects in the field of Mechanical Engineering and Economics at the Technical University of Hannover.
Contact with the Kestnergesellschaft in Hannover.
1954-64 Worked intermittently as Industrial Consultant.
1957 Degree as Doctor of Engineering at the Technical University of Hannover.
1958-60 Studies in Philosophy and the History of Art at the University of Munich.
Gets acquainted with the research and analytic of CG Jung.
1959 Marriage – four daughters.
1960 First works of art using machine parts and rubber.
1961 Rents a house in Holterdorf near Melle (Lower Saxony) as workshop, which he later buys and adapts to his home and workshop.
During the same time, creation of the first, some very large oil paintings on canvas or wood panels.
Among the paintings are also some wooden figures (oil on plywood, hanging in front of the walls.)
1963-65 Winter sojourns in a second workshop in Locarno.
1965 Establishment of the tapestry-weaving workshop in Holterdorf and manufacture of the first tapestries.
1969 Engages with graphic work, first serigraphy, later lithography and etching. Set up of an adjoining yarn dyeing workshop.
1969 First individual exhibition in the Kunsthalle Bielefeld.
1972 Commission and construction of the first open air steel polychrom plastic in Bielefeld.
1976 Creation of large coloured ceramic sculptures, wall mounted or inserted into the bottom of a pool.
1982-84 Architecture project: Design and implementation of a house in Werther in the Teutoburg Forest.
1984-... Design and construction of further large steel sculptures for the exterior as well smaller ones for the interior.
1987 Large individual exhibition in the Gallery Bernheim-Jeune in Paris.
1996 Installation of large steel sculpture "Die Lektion, I" in Melle-Neuenkirchen (Lower Saxony). Sale arrangements already in 1992.
1997 Temporary exhibition of the sculptures "The dancing Berserkers" on the so-called "Altona balcony" overlooking the river banks of the Elbe in Hamburg.
2001-11 Planning and installation of a Sculpture Park on the gardens of the Château des Fougis in the Bourbonnais, France.
2011 Erich Engelbrecht dies on 21 July in Vichy.
He rests on the Park of the Château of Fougis.

Construction

The first sculptures arrived in 2002 and until his death in 2011 he managed to create an open exhibition of 29 large monumental and (mostly) coloured sculptures. The last sculpture - the smallest - arrived just after his death.

All sculptures were produced in Germany and transported by road to Fougis, where they were finally assembled.

Two sculptures positioned at the entrance of the park were created in 1984 and came to the present place after originally guarding the entrance of his property in Germany for nearly a decade and being exhibited in Hamburg-Altona (Altonaer Balkon) for nearly another decade. Belonging to a private collection, theses two sculptures are displayed on loan to the sculpture park.

Some sculptures are distributed around the Château des Fougis, others follow a path designed by the artist.

The indoor exhibition, a selection of large-format tapestries, oil paintings, small steel figures and graphics of Erich Engelbrecht, all on loan from a private collection, was imagined and installed between 2004 and 2010 by the artist himself and his wife Mrs Waltraud Engelbrecht. It is displayed throughout the galleries and the two main reception rooms of the Château des Fougis, which where specially renovated to receive these works.

List of Sculptures

Sculpture Park Engelbrecht - Plan

List of Sculptures in the park with catalogue reference, original work and its date, date of arrival each sculpture in Fougis, dimensions (height, width, thickness & weight) and finishing

List of works in the sculpture park
#Catal.NameODateFRHWTWeightFinishing
1 010.0320 The Blacksmith, I D 1985 2002 10.0 9.2 0.33 112.00 raw steel
2 011.0321 He Puffs up his Chest D 1992 2002 7.0 3.2 0.25 13.75 raw steel
3 012.0322 The Bird and the Son of the Bird D S 1973 2003 6.3 4.2 x 3.7 0.055 12.00 polychrome
4 013.0323 Falling over D 1986 2004 7.0 5.5 0.23 27.26 black
5 014.0324 The Circumspect D 1992 2004 12.0 3.8 0.35 45.90 white
6 015.0325 Icarus D 1992 2004 9.0 9.9 0.30 61.45 white
7 016.0326 Chieftain Sharp Tongue, II D 1990 2004 7.0 5.4 0.23 29.52 white
8 017.0327 Mundalin's Return D 1990 2005 9.0 6.4 0.30 56.64 white
9 018.0328 Elvira (red) P 1961 2006 7.8 1.7 0.23 15.57 polychrome
10 019.0329 The Pistol and the Victim W 1964 2005 5.3 7.0 x 3.3 0.055 9.73 polychrome
11 020.0330 The Invoker, I D 1989 2005 7.0 4.2 0.23 24.16 white
12 021.0331 The Ordeal, IV D 1990 2006 7.0 6.4 0.23 31.12 white
13 022.0332 The Accuser, I D 1986 2006 5.0 2.8 0.16 6.32 white
14 023.0333 The Lesson, I D 1985 2006 8.0 5.4 0.26 37.32 black
15 024.0334 The Scribe D 1986 2006 7.1 2.5 0.23 9.18 white
16 025.0335 The Gesticulator D 1992 2006 7.8 5.6 0.24 15.38 white
17 026.0336 The Lying Dragon P 1963 2006 2.9 9.1 0.28 23.99 polychrome
18 027.0337 Flying is difficult ! D 1992 2006 7.5 5.4 0.23 12.98 black
19 028.0338 The Horse-Necked King, IV D 1989 2006 7.0 4.9 0.23 27.73 blue
20 029.0339 What a Lucky Swine ! D 1992 2006 7.5 4.0 0.23 21.84 yellow
21 030.0340 The Knight with the Duck D 1992 2009 7.0 4.7 0.23 25.64 blue
22 031.0341 The Annihilation of the Elephant, II D 1990 2009 7.0 5.0 0.23 28.11 black
23 032.0342 The Princess and the Dragon, III D 1991 2007 11.6 9.9 0.32 92.40 beige
24 034.0344 Dancing Berserker, The Doppelgänger D 1984 2007 7.6 5.2 0.23 28.11 raw steel
25 033.0343 Dancing Berserker, The Night Walker, II D 1984 2007 7.5 5.9 0.23 27.98 raw steel
26 035.0345 Elvira (blue) P 1961 2009 11.0 2.3 0.30 40.36 polychrome
27 036.0346 Rumpelstilskin D 1986 2011 2.2 0.97 0.07 0.42 black
28 004.0314 Dancing Berserker, The Doppelgänger D 1984 2006 4.5 3.1 0.14 6.41 raw steel
29 003.0313 Dancing Berserker, The Night Walker D 1984 2006 4.4 3.5 0.14 6.41 raw steel
  • Units for dimensions: Height, Width (sculpture) and Thickness (steel platte) are in meters, the Weight (including plinth) in metric tonnes.
  • All sculptures were cut from massive steel plates.
  • The 7 digits reference in the present inventory for the catalogue : the first group with 3 digits report to the numbering within a type of works, the second group with 4 digits to the global work by the artist.
  • Column "O" (for "Originalwerk", Original Work): D - Drawing (25); P - Painting (3); S - Steel Sculpture (based on a previous wooden sculpture) (1); W - Wooden Sculpture (1).
  • Column "Date" indicates the year of the Original Work as drawing, painting or sculpture.
  • Column "FR" indicates the year of arrival in Fougis. Sculptures #28 & #29 were produced in 1984 and stood previously in Melle and Hamburg, before arriving 2006 in Fougis.


Literature

Two books on Erich Engelbrecht and the Sculpture Park are being prepared for publication at Edition Axel Menges.

  • ISBN 978-3-932565-84-7 - A book/catalogue about the Sculpture Park on the series OPUS (in English and French), with contributions from Dr. Gottfried Knapp and Arch. João J. de Abreu Vares.
  • ISBN 978-3-86905-014-0 - A Monograph Erich Engelbrecht (in German and English), with written contributions from Waltraud Engelbrecht, Renate Vogt, Dr, Gottfried Knapp and an interview with Hans-Jürgen Vogt, a longtime friend and patron Erich Engelbrecht. It will also include a first catalogue/listing on the works of the artist.

Sources

References

  1. Germain, René; et al. (2004). Châteaux, fiefs, mottes, maisons fortes et manoirs en Bourbonnais. Romagnat: Éditions De Borée. pp. 539–540. ISBN 2-84494-199-0.
  2. KNAPP, Gottfried (2018). Erich Engelbrecht - Introspektive Bilder (in German and English). ENGELBRECHT, Waltraut, VOGT, Renate, de ABREU VARES, Joao J. (1. Auflage ed.). Fellbach, Württemberg: Edition Axel Menges GmbH. ISBN 9783869050140. OCLC 1034617360.
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