A 10-metre-high steel installation of a human skeleton reeling a 300-million-year-old plesiosaur out of the water using a USB cable as a fishing line. The convergence of present, past and future. Sint-Truiden artist Tom Herck's The Fisherman inspires reflection on the nature of power, impermanence and dominance.
At the 2024 Venice Biennale, 700,000 visitors got to admire The Fisherman. From 14 August to 21 September 2025, it will be one of 50 works at Sint-Denijs-City, a biennial exhibition of contemporary art displayed along a beautiful route between the Scheldt and Lys rivers in and around Zwevegem. After the exhibition, cyclists can continue to enjoy this remarkable sculpture at its permanent location on the banks of the Scheldt in Spiere-Helkijn.
Was it ego and dominance that led Tom Herck to have a CT scan taken of his skull and then print and enlarge it before adding it to the rest of the skeleton? Or did he do it to emphasise the finitude of humanity, in the company of the reeled-in ancient dinosaur? Or to represent the entanglement with his digital self via the USB fishing line? Whatever the motivation, the work intertwines past, present and future. Archaeology, biology, technology and mythology come together. The Fisherman is also in a dialogue with his surroundings. As it stands there at the edge of the dried-up old outdoor swimming pool, a symbol of the past, and on the reflective black base - a symbol of our present and possibly future screen addiction.
If you have the opportunity, be sure to visit this symbolically rich sculpture.
