The construction of a new work by Hew Locke in Ostend, Belgium, has been halted. The work was commissioned by the city of Ostend in 2023 to recontextualise an equestrian statue of former Belgian king Leopold II. Judith Ooms, a member of the city council, claimed that the project had gone too far with too little consultation with the residents.
Between 1885 and 1908, Leopold II established the ‘Congo Free State’ (today the Democratic Republic of the Congo) as his private possession. His reign is known for its particular brutality, including forced labour, torture, amputations and death from malnutrition. In Belgium, several statues of the king have previously been targeted by protests and removed.
In 2023 the city of Ostend decided to keep their public monument of Leopold II but commission a new sculpture to give it context. Hew Locke’s proposal was selected from a shortlist of eleven works, all of which were exhibited in the Royal Galleries in Ostend. Locke’s project was composed of five pillars topped by gold sculptures referring to colonial history. The final sculptures were to be decided in consultation with local residents.
Earlier this week the new city council, elected in 2024, halted the installation of the work, which was set to be unveiled later this year. They announced that there hadn’t been enough public support for the sculpture and stated that alternative proposals were still being explored.
