Jean Arp / Hans Arp (September 16, 1886 – June 7, 1966) was one of the most prolific, revered, and famous German-French sculptors, painters, and poets. His designs were concrete in nature and distorted reality to express his political views in the form of art. Arp had adopted many styles, especially ‘Surrealism’ and ‘Abstractionism’. He also founded ‘Dadaism’. Jean’s main interest lay in ‘Surrealism’, as through it she could freely express his philosophical and political views. In 1931 he ventured into sculpture, which while substantial, also symbolized his particular point of view. One of Jean Arp’s most famous sculptures is “Cloud Shepherd”, presented at the Ciudad Universitaria in Caracas, Venezuela, in 1953. The sculpture continues to adorn the university.
The University City of Caracas is famous for its architectural brilliance and urbanism. This university was exceptionally famous for its massive and prolific art sculptures, all of which were initially planned by architect Carlos Raúl Villanueva. Many sculptors from all over the world contributed to this project. Among them stands out “Cloud Shepherd” by Jean Arp. During the construction of the sculpture, the world had just survived World War II. Arp wanted to represent his political views, which he achieved through this sculpture.
Located near the Plaza Cubierto of the university, this sculpture, made of pure bronze, was quite tangible in nature. This was different from traditional sculpture methods, which were more abstract and deviated from reality. “Cloud Shepherd” was more real, as it took up more space, which Arp intended, as he believed the sculpture to be a composition like ‘a fruit growing on man’. This sculpture had a clear shape and structure, upon which when a sudden flash of light falls; illuminates the entire environment with its refraction. The curve of the sculpture symbolized the wonders of nature, such as clouds, hills, and lakes to represent his distaste for machines and money, which were the main cause of wars.
Flavored with ‘surrealism’ and ‘dadaism’, through “Cloud Shepherd” Hans Arp wanted to express his disgust for bourgeois capitalist society. Due to the architectural wonder of it, the “Cloud Shepherd” site, Ciudad Universitaria de Caracas, UNESCO, in 2000, listed it as a ‘World Heritage Site’. Jean Arp’s contribution to this university project cannot be forgotten, thanks to his innovative sculpture “Cloud Shepherd”, a perfect souvenir in the field of art.
