Wood Art

By Sjef Guntlisbergen

Sjef guntlisbergen

Wood artist Sjef Guntlisbergen (36) grew up in Brabant and Limburg as third of four sons in an entrepreneurial family. Hard work, entrepreneurial spirit and creativity ware an essential part in his upbringing. Sjef has always sought his own way and went beyond what his environment expected from him. Due to the fact that the catering business demanded a lot of family time, he could develop his own passions beyond the control of his parents.

Horses

After the family moved to Limburg, Sjef came into contact with the equestrian sport at a young age. He has a great love for the animals, but did not fit in the structure to be successful in sports. In addition to the love for horses, Sjef spending much of his time outside. With his brothers, he soon built the largest, most exotic tree huts and most beautiful totem pales. Something where he could completely use his creativity. When his schoolwork began to suffer from his many secondary activities, he switched to a practical training school to make woodwork and the timber craft. After a short career in housing construction, Sjef just had to become an entrepreneur and started his own business. Independent entrepreneurship gives him the freedom to combine his commercial timber activities with his artistry.

Wood aRt

As a wood artist, Sjef is inspired by his great passion for horses. The fact that both of his activities complement each other, revealed a couple of years ago when Toverland Amusement Park kept refusing him to show his work. As a clever list, he has put together a carefully restored Horse of Troy, which he placed in front of the gates of the park in the middle of the night. In accordance with the legend, the employees carried the horse, filled with information, into the gates. His stunt even generated attention from the media. Resulting in a front page article in Limburgs Dagblad and a personal relationship with the management of Toverland.

Work Method

When we ask wood artist Sjef Guntlisbergen how he creates his work, he remains quit for a little while. “My works kind of arise spontaneously,” says Chef. “As soon as I get the right inspiration, work comes out of my hands by itself. On moments like that, it’s hard to let the work of art in progress rest for a while. “Taking a break to rest is no unnecessary luxury, with the many, up to hundreds of hours, of craft time that goes into it.

Due to the intuitive method of Sjef, all artworks are unique, reproductions are not produced. All works are provided by the artist with their own code, name and date. Sjef only works, based on his own inspiration and does not produce art on order. However, the artist is open to be inspired by footage and backgrounds of powerful horses.

Works offered for sale are placed, in close consultation between the artist and the buyer, on a custom-made pedestal, which reinforces the work of art and the new environment. Prices of the art works are available on request and partly depend on the finishing touch (pedestal).

Anatomy

Sjef’s wood art impresses people. With powerful and realistic shapes, he manages to catch the anatomy of horses in robust wood art. Sjef’s art works are not made, but they arise. Up to four and a half meter tall horses are manufactured in tens of thousands of craft-crafted wooden slats and nails in many hundreds of hours. Based on feeling, Sjef makes anatomically correct horses that seem to be able to walk away.

Sjef’s works can be visited in consultation with the artist and are selectively exhibited during art or hippic events. Last year, his creations were featured during the Hiltho, CSI and Jim.

Contact

For additional information or images, feel free to contact me.