Karel Appel - Noah for "The National Opera" - Sold

PLEASE NOTE: The dimensions were previously reported incorrectly. 112 cm x 255 cm is the correct size
Art object, designed in (presumably) 1994 by Karel Appel for the production of the opera "Noach" commissioned by "De Nationale Opera" in Amsterdam.

This is a wooden airplane painted by Appel. This plane has been in our possession since the last performance of "Noach". We do not know whether the work was made in 1994 for the first performance, or in 1999 for the repeat of Noah.
My father, Fernando Ferreira (unfortunately passed away in 2022), worked for almost 40 years at "The National Opera" in Amsterdam. He is
started as an extra and eventually became head of the props department.

In 1994, Karel Appel was asked by the then artistic director Pierre Audi to design the decor for the opera Noah.
My father worked closely with both of them as a prop director. This opera was performed again in 1999. See YouTube and search for "Noach (1999) De Nationale Opera". A similar airplane can be seen in the opening image.
After the success of this opera and as a token of gratitude, Karel Appel donates
the above-mentioned set piece, specially designed by him for this opera, to my father.
Throughout his work, Fernando was very professional, passionate and above all proud of the fact that he had the opportunity to collaborate with some of the most important leading artists such as Philip Glass and Jannis Kounellis.

But the collaboration with Karel Appel and the story of the plane, which I had to listen to for years, is what he remembers most. Strangely enough, I never saw that plane in all that time because it was safely stored in our storage. Fernando has now passed away and my mother will probably move to Portugal (they fled to the Netherlands in 1970 because of the then ruling dictatorship).
The plane is quite large, about 4m long and 1m25 high. Not really convenient to transport. And apart from that, I believe that the work of art belongs in the Netherlands.