The internationally renowned artist herman de vries (1931-) represented the Netherlands at the Venice Biennale in 2015. In the Rietveld Pavilion, he presented multiple works as part of the exhibition ‘to be all ways to be’. One particular work, this stone from a quarry near Venice with the text veritas existentiae engraved in gilded letters, was placed near the entrance to the pavilion. This text refers to a key concept in the work of French philosopher Pierre Gassendi: ‘the truth of existence’ is hidden in the objects around us. De vries’ work is often inspired by nature and natural processes. Herman de vries studied at a state horticultural school in Hoorn and worked as a botanist/analyst from 1961 to 1968 at, among others, the Institute for Applied Biological Field Research (ITBON), a predecessor to Wageningen Environmental Research. A work he created for ITBON in 1968 is now on permanent loan at the Rijksmuseum. Veritas Existentiae can be found on the lawn near the Orion building.

More info at: WUR Image Collections