Weeping Figure with Red Veil

Weeping Figure with Red Veil (2009) by Berend Strik combines two potent symbols: tears (grief, sorrow, deep emotion) and the red veil (passion, concealment that simultaneously reveals).

The veil is one of art history's most enduring motifs — from Byzantine mosaics to Rembrandt's portraits. To veil is both to cover and to suggest what lies beneath. The red veil specifically carries connotations of passion, blood, and life.

The weeping figure is equally enduring — from Michelangelo's Pietà to Picasso's Weeping Women. Strik's textile interventions — adding fabric layers, creating texture — echo the veil's function of covering while simultaneously enhancing. The red textile becomes both subject matter and material at once.

Sources: Galerie Fons Welters