The Baliekluiver (Layabout) refers to a time when the activity in the city of Utrecht was concentrated around the canals and wharves. The loading and unloading of ships onto carts and further transportation required a lot of manpower. The Baliekluiver symbolizes a casual worker who, leaning on the railing (balie), waits for a job at the canal. Because the demand for work sometimes exceeded the supply, the typically Utrecht word ‘Baliekluiver' also acquired the connotation of ‘idler' or ‘good-for-nothing'.
Designed and executed in 2020 by:
AD JENNER
based on an idea by Albert de Rijk †
WIND
with sealed eyes
the image awaits its
completion
bewildered in the new tumult of the wind
that cares not for
origin or destination
Fred Jenner
The Layabout (baliekluiver)