Opbouwpenning 1940 1940

This bronze medal, called Opbouwpenning 1940, was made by Han Richters. Imagine the artist’s hand carefully crafting this scene, pressing the metal to create a tactile surface. Here's a figure, nude and unashamed. He's like a classical statue, but also he’s building something new. He's got his trowel in one hand, ready to lay bricks. Behind him, a tree grows, symbolizing growth and life, its trunk reaching upwards. I wonder if Richters was thinking about the future, about rebuilding after some kind of destruction? It's got that feeling, you know? Like, "We've been through some stuff, but we're not giving up." What would it be like to hold it in your hand, to feel the weight of it? These things, these little sculptures, they're not just objects. They're like someone whispering in your ear, “Keep going.”