Henry Moore
Reclining Figure, 1938
Lead
Length: 5 1/2 in, 14 cm
One of two cast in lead
This sculpture was later cast in bronze in an edition of 12
This sculpture was later cast in bronze in an edition of 12
Henry Moore’s creation of ‘Reclining Figure’ came at a time when his art was closely tied to Surrealism. Moore first engaged with the Surrealist movement during his stay in Paris...
Henry Moore’s creation of ‘Reclining Figure’ came at a time when his art was closely tied to Surrealism. Moore first engaged with the Surrealist movement during his stay in Paris in 1930. He became friends with the Surrealist artists Jean Arp and Joan Miró and took their interest in biomorphic forms, mixing them with Abstraction to create his own unique artistic vocabulary.
With British sculpture considered insignificant, Moore’s work brought Modern British art back to the forefront. During this time Moore was a member of Unit One, a group formed by Paul Nash in 1933, whose other members included Ben Nicholson, Barbara Heworth, Frances Hodgkins, Edward Burra and Wells Coates. Designed to be both united and individual, the collective sought to bring the two avant-garde movements of the time, Abstraction and Surrealism, together in order to “stand for the expression of a truly contemporary spirit”.
In ‘Reclining Figure’ Moore simplifies the form of the figure, transforming and manipulating the shape. In line with the application of biomorphism, the molten curves and hollows of the body, and the antennae-like head, reference the organic shapes found in nature.
In the late 1930s Moore built a kiln in the garden of Burcroft, his Kent cottage, and began to experiment with lead casting. To make the sculptures Moore melted down a length of lead armature piping from Chelsea School of Art, where he was teaching at the time. Having created a model from wax, which he then encased in plaster, he would place the model in a kiln to melt out the wax leaving the casing into which the lead would be poured. This process is known as direct lost wax casting, was highly precarious and the fumes were dangerous. Moore quickly abandoned the lead and kiln in favour of bronze.
Between 1938 and 1939, Moore created at least sixteen lead sculptures, including the present. Other reclining figures from this series of lead works are now in the collections of Tate, London and The Museum of Modern Art, New York.
With British sculpture considered insignificant, Moore’s work brought Modern British art back to the forefront. During this time Moore was a member of Unit One, a group formed by Paul Nash in 1933, whose other members included Ben Nicholson, Barbara Heworth, Frances Hodgkins, Edward Burra and Wells Coates. Designed to be both united and individual, the collective sought to bring the two avant-garde movements of the time, Abstraction and Surrealism, together in order to “stand for the expression of a truly contemporary spirit”.
In ‘Reclining Figure’ Moore simplifies the form of the figure, transforming and manipulating the shape. In line with the application of biomorphism, the molten curves and hollows of the body, and the antennae-like head, reference the organic shapes found in nature.
In the late 1930s Moore built a kiln in the garden of Burcroft, his Kent cottage, and began to experiment with lead casting. To make the sculptures Moore melted down a length of lead armature piping from Chelsea School of Art, where he was teaching at the time. Having created a model from wax, which he then encased in plaster, he would place the model in a kiln to melt out the wax leaving the casing into which the lead would be poured. This process is known as direct lost wax casting, was highly precarious and the fumes were dangerous. Moore quickly abandoned the lead and kiln in favour of bronze.
Between 1938 and 1939, Moore created at least sixteen lead sculptures, including the present. Other reclining figures from this series of lead works are now in the collections of Tate, London and The Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Provenance
Charles Medley, London (a gift from the artist c. 1939)
Brook Street Gallery, London
Private Collection (purchased at the above and thence by descent)
Sotheby’s, London, 2 December 1987, lot 228
Private Collection, Germany (purchased from above)
Literature
D. Sylvester, Henry Moore: Complete Sculpture, 1921-48, Vol. I, London, 1957, no. 193, pp. 12 and 116, illus.
H. Read, Henry Moore, London, 1965, no. 103, p. 123, illus.
I. Jianou, Henry Moore, Paris, 1968, no. 181, p. 71
R. Melville, Henry Moore: Sculpture and Drawings 1921-1969, London, 1970, no. 177, pl. 177, p. 345
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