Description
Jos Steenkamp unique bronze sculpture, An Eccentric Old Man, created in 2024, is a delightful and insightful exploration of individuality in later life. Though modest in stature at 19 cm high and weighing 2.2 kg, the piece conveys a large personality and profound comfort in its own being. The bronze is likely finished with a warm, perhaps slightly lustrous patina that emphasizes the playful yet dignified volumes of the figure. The treatment of the surface, with its organic unconventional form, folds and contours, would highlight the weathered yet proud, curious yet grounded nature of the character. This is not just a depiction of age, but a celebration of it, particularly the freedom that can come with accepting and expressing one’s authentic self. As the artist notes, “Maturity is being comfortable with our uniqueness. Manifesting this individuality is often seen as eccentricity, though it is our divine & most natural state of being.” An Eccentric Old Man, perfectly captures a character who wears his mind as a crown, suggesting that his lived experiences and accumulated wisdom are his most prized and defining adornments. The fluidity of his form indeed mirrors the complex layers of his psyche, hinting at a rich inner world.
This portrayal of authentic selfhood comes from the insightful mind and skilled hands of Jos Steenkamp (SA 1957), an artist who seamlessly blends his creative practice with his decades of experience as Dr Jo Steenkamp, a distinguished Clinical Psychologist in Pretoria. After earning his doctorate in Psychology in 1991, Dr Steenkamp went on to develop the innovative SHIP® (Spontaneous Healing Intra, systemic Process) psychotherapeutic method. His nearly forty year career has been committed to understanding and facilitating the spontaneous healing of trauma and addressing the psycho- biological regulation of internal dis, ease. He founded The SHIP® Foundation in 2001 and continues to lead it, alongside his extensive writing and speaking engagements. Dr Steenkamp’s return to sculpting in 2021, after a 22 year pause dedicated to SHIP®, was a significant “coming home.” This return allowed him to unite his profound understanding of psychological development and the human quest for authenticity with the expressive potential of sculpture, a passion he first discovered at sixteen.
“An Eccentric Old Man” can be interpreted as a beautiful artistic reflection of the psychological concept of individuation, a core theme in many depth psychologies and a natural outcome of the healing facilitated by SHIP®. The sculpture’s embrace of uniqueness and eccentricity as a divine and most natural state of being aligns with the therapeutic goal of helping individuals shed conditioned responses and societal expectations to connect with and express their true selves. The comfort the old man embodies is the peace that comes from such authentic alignment. The idea that he “wears his mind as a crown” speaks to the value of lived experience and inner richness over external trappings, a perspective often cultivated through deep psychological work and self, acceptance. Jos Steenkamp’s, describes his creative process as an intuitive interplay of the conscious and unconscious, resulting in sculptures that are vessels of relational energy.
An Eccentric Old Man warmly invites this relational exchange, encouraging viewers to perhaps smile in recognition, to appreciate the beauty of a life lived fully and authentically, and to reflect on their own journey towards embracing their unique character. It is a celebration of the human spirit’s capacity to mature not into conformity, but into a richer, more distinctive expression of self.
Artist: Jos Steenkamp (SA1957)
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