{"id":30,"date":"2026-07-21T15:27:35","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T13:27:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ilseoelbers.nl\/index.php\/over\/"},"modified":"2026-10-30T12:28:17","modified_gmt":"2026-10-30T11:28:17","slug":"bio","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/ilseoelbers.nl\/en\/bio\/","title":{"rendered":"Biography"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo: Eddy Wenting<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Ilse Oelbers trained as a boat builder in England. After working for several years as a ship steward and sailor on the Windjammers, Oelbers spent some time making wooden rudder and bow assemblies and other nautical decorations for sea-going vessels. It was a period of abundant commissions, with interesting results, but it became increasingly clear from this work that her true calling lay in three-dimensional form-making as a sculptor. With realism as her constant guide, but detached from decoration and functionality.<\/p>

In recent years, Oelbers\u2019 sculptures have addressed major social issues: gender, war, discrimination, migration, loneliness, and the uncertainty about the future. Yet they never deal with abstract questions, but always with the human being who must adapt to these circumstances. Oelbers shows how, under pressure from circumstances, people try to maintain their balance, how they bear loss and maintain their dignity despite everything. Her sculptures do not illustrate; they interpret. They add a layer of meaning to reality, thereby elevating the private above itself. Those who take the time to look will not find unambiguous answers, but are challenged to re-think humanity and consolation. Her work is constantly evolving.<\/p>

Oelbers\u2019 work is represented by leading galleries in the Netherlands and abroad and can be seen at various art fairs. Additionally, a number of sculptures can be seen at Studio Ilse Oelbers in Harlingen, the Netherlands.\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\u201cWhen I work, I try to let go of everything and focus on the one thing that truly matters, the breath of every artist: the work itself. I begin with the armature, playing with it until I am satisfied with the pose. Then it begins: rasping, chiseling, shaping, modelling, working the clay. Without mercy, and often unreachable to the people I love. I eat quickly and sleep restlessly. Looking, looking again. And then, finally, I put my name in the clay. I widen my gaze, and every time I am amazed to discover that everything has simply carried on.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Foto: Eddy Wenting Ilse Oelbers is opgeleid tot bootbouwer in Engeland. Na een aantal jaren als scheepstimmervrouw en matroos gewerkt te hebben op de Windjammers maakte Oelbers een tijd lang houten roer- en boegbeelden en andere scheepssier voor zeegaande schepen. Het werd een periode van overvloedig veel opdrachten, met interessante resultaten, maar vanuit dit werk […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"elementor_header_footer","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-30","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nOver Ilse Oelbers - van scheepstimmervrouw tot beeldhouwer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Van scheepstimmervrouw op de Windjammers tot beeldhouwer. 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