Sculptor Renée van Leusden (1947) studied at the Royal Academy of Art and Design in 's-Hertogenbosch before becoming a professional sculptor in 1973. Her major breakthrough came in 1991 when her work was included in the “Mac 2000: Exposition Femmes Contemporaines” at the prestigious Grand Palais in Paris. Renée van Leusden sculpts life itself. Her work reflects a deep social commitment and interest in humanity, capturing emotions such as tenderness, fear, compassion, anger, love, (im)power, vulnerability, pride, (in)equality, poverty, joy, and pain. This makes her work highly accessible and universal. Her artistic evolution is striking: beginning with stone carving and clay modelling (after years of restoration work on the Sint Jans Cathedral), she gradually developed into creating bronze sculptures moulded from wax, which became increasingly open over time. Initially, her pieces were simpler, reduced to a few essential lines; now, they embody all the freedom they seek.