SPRINGER / KNIGHT
JØRN RØNNAU, 1994
På området ved Jydsk Væddeløbsbane i Aarhus står denne flotte Springer. Med sine på samme tid både grove og fine træk, er den resultatet af kunstneren Jørn Rønnau's arbejde med naturens eget matriale, i form af et gammelt elmetræ.
Ved at tilføre Springeren fra skakspillet hestens naturlige størrelse tager, kunstneren med en beundringsværdig enkelthed, brætspillets strategiske og taktiske elementer, og placerer dem på væddeløbshestens slagmark.
Jørn Rønnau fortæller at, arbejdet med figuren blev fulgt tæt af de mennesker, som havde deres gang på stedet. Især rytterne kom ofte forbi med deres heste, og et slet skjulte ønske om, at netop deres hest kunne tildeles æren som model til springerens naturtro hestehoved.
Inspirationen blev dog, selv om kunstneren ikke har ønsket at afbillede en bestemt hest, fundet hos en helt anden hesterace. Springeren er i skakspillet en stiliseret figur, og her ved Jydsk Væddeløbsbane har den størst lighed, med de gamle danske bryggerheste. Ryttere og trænere, med tilknytning til Væddeløbsbanen, fortæller, at Springeren ofte har været genstand for diskussion i og omkring væddeløbsstaldene. Den manglende lighed med de klassiske væddeløbs racer undrede fagfolkene. Mange delte holdningen om, at "kunstnerisk frihed" måtte være grunden til, denne gamle danske stridshest havde fundet vej til væddeløbshestenes legeplads. Denne kunstneriske frihed har dog også haft sine fordele. Den Jyske Hest er, i følge formanden for Aarhus Travklub, formentlig en af de hesteracer, som har mindst med væddeløb at gøre, men samtidig også den race som, i kraft af dens kropsbygning og hovedform, ligger tættest på det billede almindelige mennesker har af en hest, og som kunstnerisk indslag må udformningen derfor betegnes som velvalgt.
Før i tiden var elmetræet en af de mest udbredte træsorter i Danmark. I starten af 90'erne blev bestanden ramt, af et alvorligt angreb af elmesyge. Dette svampeangreb kostede i 1994, hvor denne skulptur er lavet, over 2000 træer i Danmark livet. Held i uheld må være en nærliggende tanke, når man ser den spændende skulptur der kom ud af elmetræets rester.
This beautiful Knight is located in the stable area of the hippodrome, Jydsk Væddeløbsbane, in Aarhus, Denmark. With nature's own material, in the form of an old elm tree, the artist Jørn Rønnau has created a both coarse and fine sculpture.
By giving the knight from a chess game the natural size of a horse, the artist has taken the strategic and tactical elements of the boardgame and, with an admirable simplicity, placed them on the battleground of the racehorse.
Jørn Rønnau tells, that the creation of this sculpture were followed closely by the people, who worked at the location. Especially the riders came by with their horses, hoping the artist would choose their horse as model for the sculpture.
The inspiration was, however, all though the artist did not want to portray a particular horse, found in an entirely different breed of horses. The knight in chess a stylized figure and the head of this sculpture looks a lot like the old Danish brewery horses. Riders and coaches associated with the race track tells that, the knight often has been the subject of discussion in and around the racing stables. The dissimilarity with the classic racing breeds made the professionals wonder. Many agreed that "artistic freedom" was the reason, this old Danish war-horse had entered this racehorse playground. The Jutland Horse is, according to the chairman of the Aarhus Harness Racing Club, probably one of the breeds that have least in common with horse racing. He sees the breed, due to the shape of the body and particulary the head, as the image ordinary people see when thinking of a horse. Symbolizing both the Knight and a horse this can only be described as a well chosen design.
In the past, the elm was one of the most abundant species in Denmark. In the early '90s, the population was hit by a severe attack of Dutch elm disease. This fungus attack killed, in 1994 when this sculpture was made, more than 2000 elm trees in Denmark. A blessing in disguise is an obvious thought when you see the exciting sculpture from this old Elm that couldn't be saved.