Eddy Merckx Bikes and M Leuven auction an exclusive ‘Dieric Bouts’ bike for The Warmest Week
Eddy Merckx Bikes and M Leuven are joining forces for a good cause. A unique bike inspired by Dieric Bouts’ The Last Supper is being auctioned in support of The Warmest Week.
A collaboration between an iconic bike brand and a museum? M Leuven is currently showing a major retrospective dedicated to the still little-known Flemish master, Dieric Bouts. International masterpieces by the painter are juxtaposed with works by contemporary photographers, film-makers and game designers in the exhibition DIERIC BOUTS. Creator of Images. For example, present-day image-makers use the same visual language in portraits of sports icons as Bouts did in his devotional images of Christ and saints. Bouts’ impact still resonates today. There is an astonishing similarity between his 15th-century portrait of Christ and the way modern sporting icons are portrayed, such as Eddy Merckx.
Which is how Dieric Bouts and Eddy ‘the Cannibal’ Merckx find each other in an unexpected setting. What started out as an interpretation by curator Peter Carpreau and sports photographers Jasper Jacobs and Sebastian Steveniers has been transformed into a charity action. One that will help the image-makers of tomorrow grow up in better conditions. The bike will be on display in the entrance hall of M.
“Of course, I regularly walk through our great Bouts exhibition and always prick up my ears to catch the whispered reactions of our visitors. It’s a very celebratory atmosphere, especially at the spot where we visually associate a historic sports picture of Merckx with the master’s depiction of Christ. This 15th-century work is still a conversation piece here, five centuries later. We’re thrilled that this has also inspired the team behind Eddy Merckx Bikes to create a unique cycle in homage to Dieric Bouts. It’s a huge boost,” says Peter Bary, Managing Director of M Leuven.
Eye-catcher
The designers of this exclusive bicycle were inspired by The Last Supper, Bouts’ magnum opus. Thanks to his revolutionary use of mathematical perspective, the artist placed the figure of Christ in the spotlight.
He is also the eye-catcher on the bike. “With this design, it’s certainly a case of the devil is in the details. Christ and the chandelier from this masterpiece have pride of place on the down tube. The striking floor tiles return on the front and rear forks. On the seat tube are the robes of the apostles. Furthermore, the bike’s dominant colours are red and white, just as they are on The Last Supper. The entire cycle was given a special patina that references the painting’s natural ageing process. The longer you look at the bicycle, the more details you discover. And it’s the same with Bouts’ works,” says Pieter Vanheeswijck, communications manager at Eddy Merckx Bikes. The paintwork is by M-Level from Ruiselede.
Online auction
Bids can be placed on the ‘Dieric Bouts Pévèle C’ from 2 to 19 December via Art Auction. All proceeds go to charity.
DIERIC BOUTS
DIERIC BOUTS. Creator of Images runs until 14 January 2024 at M Leuven. Never before have so many works by the Flemish Master been assembled in his hometown. Moreover, a radical confrontation between Bouts’ work and today’s visual culture gives visitors a totally new perspective on artworks that are over five centuries old. In addition, the entire city of Leuven is celebrating with an event-filled festival dedicated to the Flemish Master. The ‘New Horizons | Dieric Bouts Festival’ is inspiring young and old with so much more than visual art.
More Merckx from January
The Dieric Bouts bike is a first step in the relaunch of Eddy Merckx Bikes. Jochim Aerts, CEO of Belgian Cycling Factory says: “In January 2024, we will present the renewed range of Merckx bikes to the general public during the Velofollies bicycle fair. Through this collaboration with M Leuven, we can already demonstrate that Eddy Merckx bikes are back. And we hope to make a marvellous contribution to The Warmest Week with this exceptional cycle.”
The Eddy Merckx Pévèle C is an all-road bike. It is suitable for different surfaces: from smooth asphalt to narrow gravel paths. The bike is equipped with a Shimano 105-groupset, plus a 2x drivetrain and a Cirrus Pro Flared cockpit. The cycle is ready to hit the road thanks to the sturdy Forza Norte wheelset and Vittoria Rubino Pro tyres (30 millimetres).
Bert Cornillie