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Ian Hamilton Finlay

The works of Ian Hamilton Finlay (b. 1925, Nassau – d. 2006, Edinburgh) blend seamlessly into the landscape. His piece HUIUS SECULI CONSTANTIA ATQUE ORDO INCONSTANTIA POST ERITATIS A ST. J (1990), which can be seen in the Dräi Eechelen Park, takes its Latin title from the words of Louis Antoine de Saint-Just (1767–1794), a political orator during the French Revolution known for his eloquence, and means: ‘The order of the present is the disorder of the future.’ It is an invitation to contemplate and to reflect on the notion of ruins, remnants and fragments.

The piece forms part of a group of works donated by the American Friends of Mudam and made possible by the donation made by Raymond J. Learsy. Its installation in the immediate vicinity of the museum resonates with another of the artist’s works in the Mudam Collection – Ripple (2001) – which is on permanent display in Luxembourg City’s Clausen district.

Artworks

  1. Ian Hamilton Finlay Huius Seculi Constantia Atque Ordo Inconstantia Post Eritatis A St. J., 1990

    Ian Hamilton Finlay (avec Annet Stirling)
    Pierre
    700 x 550 cm
    Collection Mudam Luxembourg
    Donation 2022 – American Friends of Mudam, Collection Raymond J. Learsy
    © Photo : Sven Becker

  1. Ian Hamilton Finlay Ripple, 2001

    Gravure sur ardoise
    60 x 140 cm
    Collection Mudam Luxembourg
    Acquisition 2002
    © Photo : Christian Mosar

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