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White swans, black swans,

Who will sail with you to England,

England is closed,

The key is broken,

Is there not a single man then,

Who can make the key?

Go on, go on,

From the back and from the front.

With this traditional children's song from the ^19th century, the history of this metal relief on the wall of the Walloon Louise de Coligny School begins. The swans and the burly figure with a huge key the song talks about are clearly recognizable. One would think that England is about Britain, but probably this song is referring to angel-land, the land of angels. And then the large figure represents Jesus Christ who, as - son of a - carpenter, repairs the key to heaven. Matthew 6, 25-34.

The picture was created by book illustrator and artist Henk Krijger. Between 1950 and 1969 he received more than 50 commissions from schools, and hospitals for wall decoration. These included a number of schools in The Hague South-West. And the Louise de Colignyschool in Mariahoeve. In all his representations and works of art he managed to combine the deeply human and religious with unpretentious forms. With him no frills, but the essence which he presented to the viewer in an accessible way. Because of his graphic background, many of his representations and sculptures look like simple drawings. That is precisely why they have great power.

When the Walloon Louise de Coligny School was due for a new building, the then principal, together with concerned and art-loving local residents, arranged for Krijger's relief to be reinstalled on the school's facade. Because of the poor condition of the original relief, it was eventually decided to make a replica. Because the available wall surface was more limited in the new building, the scale of the replica is also one step smaller than the original. The depiction, however, is the same. Since the fall of 2023, White Swans, Black Swans has hung next to the entrance to the new school building. Thus, this postwar relief was given a second life. And even now, the black relief contrasts well with the light school wall.