The first permanent sculpture by Plensa in Belgian public space Acclaimed Spanish visual artist, sculptor, designer and engraver Jaume Plensa is renowned for his ability to weave spirituality, corporeality, and collective memory into his sculptures and installations, using a wide range of materials. Many of his iconic sculptures can be found in public spaces, in some of the most evocative places in the world. The city of Leuven now joins this list with the acquisition by KU Leuven of The Four Elements, the first permanent sculpture by Jaume Plensa in Belgian public space. The sculpture The Four Elements consists of two parts in bronze, located in two places, the gallery of the KU Leuven University Library and the newly created St-Raphaël Square. The first part, Fire, commemorates the resurrection of the University Library after the devastating fire of World War I. Water, Earth, Air, the second part, rises like a totem pole on a new urban site that is a meeting point for health care and medicine. This collection of essays documents how the two parts of the sculpture and its two sites represent a broader trinity of interaction and togetherness: between the university and the city and its public spaces, between research and art, between the study of health (in this case the brain) and organizing care. Acclaimed Spanish visual artist, sculptor, designer and engraver Jaume Plensa is renowned for his ability to weave spirituality, corporeality, and collective memory into his sculptures and installations, using a wide range of materials. Many of his iconic sculptures can be found in public spaces, in some of the most evocative places in the world. The city of Leuven now joins this list with the acquisition by KU Leuven of The Four Elements, the first permanent sculpture by Jaume Plensa in Belgian public space. The sculpture The Four Elements consists of two parts in bronze, located in two places, the gallery of the KU Leuven University Library and the newly created St-Raphaël Square. The first part, Fire, commemorates the resurrection of the University Library after the devastating fire of World War I. Water, Earth, Air, the second part, rises like a totem pole on a new urban site that is a meeting point for health care and medicine. This collection of essays documents how the two parts of the sculpture and its two sites represent a broader trinity of interaction and togetherness: between the university and the city and its public spaces, between research and art, between the study of health (in this case the brain) and organizing care. A Proper Tribute Urbain Vandeurzen Knowledge and Art Luc Sels A Warm Welcome in Leuven Mohamed Ridouani & Bert Cornillie The Four Elements Filip Abraham & Koenraad Debackere Stéphane Symons in Conversation with Jaume Plensa Eyes Wide Shut – One Theme, with a Dozen Associations around The Four Elements Johan Wagemans One Sedes Sapientiae, Two Locations, Four Elements Mark Derez Four Elements of Academic and Artistic Research Erik Thys The Four Elements Mark Derez A Skin of Language Tom Van Imschoot St. Raphaël’s Square Rebecca Gysen & Karen Landuydt Leuven: Art in Public Spaces Stéfanie Lambrechts Coda Plensa and Contemporary KU Leuven: Four Elements, Three Narratives, Two Locations, One Sculpture Geert Bouckaert Biography Jaume Plensa Selected Artworks Jaume Plensa About the Authors Colophon