From the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows in Ruiselede, I received the commission to redesign their grave monument, located at the cemetery of Ruiselede.

I regarded this special commission as my personal contribution to the ongoing evolution of funerary art.

My aim was to create a Gesamtkunstwerk. As a result, it has become an interplay of arts in which landscape architecture, funerary art, calligraphy, and the crafts of stone carving and metalworking together form a harmonious whole.

In this mass grave, more than 300 sisters have been buried over time. The names of the 300 sisters who passed away between 1734 and 2000 together form the steel fence surrounding the monument. The names of the sisters who died after 2000 were inscribed on bluestone nameplates. These plates will continue to be added to in the future.

The monument also includes a small place of farewell and remembrance.
The steel fencing that encloses the grave monument extends in an arched form, ultimately shaping into a semicircle in the form of a bench surrounding a pedestal, upon which flowers can be laid during moments of farewell or commemoration.

Plant symbolism was also integrated into the monument.

The Crocus

The symbol of the crocus was cut out into both the bench and the central text panel. In early spring, crocuses will also bloom beneath the two white birches.
The crocus has long been a symbol of life for the Sisters of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows. Year after year, after a long winter, it heralds the coming of spring and thus stands as a symbol of resurrection. Life returns. Always.

The Yew

The symbol of the yew also holds an important place here. For centuries, yews have been planted in cemeteries as symbols of eternal life—the ever-green plant. The “forecourt” of the monument with its semicircular bench is embraced by a trimmed yew hedge, thereby integrating this ancient symbolism within a contemporary landscape design.

The Birch

At the back stand two Himalayan birches. In many mythologies worldwide, the birch is regarded as the guardian of paradise. The birch carries the same role as the Cherub or is sometimes protected by the Cherub. Here, the two birches form a symbolic gateway to paradise.