Micky Hoogendijk (1970) - The Ones For All Children

This bronze statue is part of The Ones, a series that began during the silence of the coronavirus pandemic. At a time when the world ground to a halt, Micky Hoogendijk became fascinated by the way families were forced to rely on each other. A period in which connectedness and love, but also tension, vulnerability and interdependence felt stronger than ever.

The Ones For All Children gives a new, compelling meaning to this connectedness. The work is inspired by the images that in recent years reached us daily through the news and social media. Images of children in war zones, on the run, displaced, injured and deprived of something that every child should naturally have: safety.

“With this work I want to pause at their story. At children who are confronted far too early with a world where fear has taken the place of carefree security. War Child helps these children to rediscover something essential: a sense of safety, the freedom to play, to create, to dream and above all to be a child again.”

The original sculpture was hand-modeled in clay by Hoogendijk, with a fragile construction of iron wire temporarily holding the figures together. It was subsequently cast in bronze using the traditional cire perdue technique and finished by the artist by hand.

It is precisely this transformation, from fragile clay to durable bronze, that reflects the essence of the work. What seems fragile can carry strength within it. What threatens to fall apart can be held together through connectedness.

With this auction, Micky Hoogendijk donates 100% of the proceeds to War Child. Not only as a gesture of solidarity, but as a tangible expression of hope. Because every child deserves a future in which not fear, but trust and connectedness have space.