A monumental and layered 1983 work in which Heyens unfolds a deeply charged, symbolic vision of Calvary.
In De Kalvarieberg (1983), Hugo Heyens shapes a vast and emotionally charged landscape where the idea of Calvary becomes an inner drama rather than a literal scene. The hill seems to rise from a dense accumulation of faces, fractured bodies, architectural remnants and feverish lines — a chaotic human mass that feels alive and restless. Instead of a dominant crucifix, the spiritual climax is almost swallowed by humanity itself, as if the weight of existence overshadows the sacred.
The palette, rich in bruised reds, deep greens and dark atmospheric shadows, heightens the sense of spiritual tension. Figures flicker in and out of visibility, caught between materiality and psychological depth. Coming directly from the artist’s family and documented in L.M.A. Schoonbaert’s monograph, the work stands as one of Heyens’ most compelling symbolic compositions, where faith, anguish and human fragility collide.
Details:
Artist: Hugo Heyens (Mortsel 1942 – Antwerp 1987)
Title: De Kalvarieberg, 1983
Technique: Oil on canvas
Condition: Excellent
Signature: Signed and dated
Sold with frame: Yes
Dimensions without frame: 149.5 × 99 cm
Dimensions with frame: 153.5 × 103.2 cm
Provenance: Directly from the family
Notes: Exhibited at the Abbey Museum of Bonheiden; documented in Hugo Heyens – L.M.A. Schoonbaert (ISBN 9789073214057)
