Deelnemerspenning van de Negende Olympiade te Amsterdam 1928 1928

This participant's medal from the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics was made by Johannes Cornelis Wienecke, and you can see it here at the Rijksmuseum. What’s striking is how Wienecke's process feels both classical and very modern. Look at the surface of the bronze - it has a kind of worn texture, but also an exactness to its execution. In particular, the rendering of the nudes is really interesting – they are idealized, sure, but they are also a little clunky and awkward, not quite perfect. They remind me of Maillol, who was of course also working at this time, but these are more humble, more modest. The surface is tactile, begging to be touched. The scales at the bottom of the coin, with the male and female nudes above them, holding the torch - it’s about balance, right? About the balance of masculine and feminine, of strength and beauty, of sport and culture. I am reminded of how artmaking is also about balancing these things, and trying to capture an ideal through the messiness of process.