Jacques Lipchitz

On Tuesday, February 10th, the Directors of Marlborough Gallery will present the opening of an exhibition of sculpture and drawings by one of the twentieth century’s major sculptors, Jacques Lipchitz. The exhibition will comprise sculpture and drawings from the various stages of Lipchitz’ long and distinguished career and will include rare and seldom seen sculpture from the artist’s earliest period, several Cubist pieces, as well as a number of important works from later years.

From his earliest period the exhibition will feature five works from 1911 to 1914. Among these are Woman with Gazelles, Horsewoman with Fan, and Acrobat on Horseback, three of Lipchitz’ most beautiful creations. Woman with Gazelles, 1911-1912, was his first major sculpture. In its elongation of the arms and the slender body and in the balance and equilibrium of the simplified treatment of the volumes, it shares with Maillol, whose timeless nudes interested Lipchitz at that time, a feeling of classical calm. Horsewoman with Fan, 1913, and Acrobat on Horseback, 1914, mark the beginning of a radical change in the direction of Lipchitz’s art toward Cubism and this can be seen in how the various elements of the body are rendered in a simplified, schematic manner of planes and curves. The subject of these works reflects Lipchitz’ interest in the Medrano Circus, popular in Paris at that time with a number of artists. Of the Cubist works Seated Figure, 1915, is perhaps Lipchitz’s most abstract sculpture of Cubist design, for in this work the sense of the figure is almost completely integrated into the sculpture’s formal structure of planes and curvilinear form. Another highlight of the show is Man with Guitar, 1920. This work underlines Lipchitz development towards “a kind of massive frontality.” Composed of integrated blocks its asymmetrical staring eyes give to the figure “a peculiar sense of almost hypnotic power which emphasizes its specific human personality.” Commenting further about this sculpture Lipchitz said, “This is a work that is important to me as an anticipation of the monumental totemistic Figureof 1926 to 1930.” Also from this period the show will feature Still Life, 1918, from the series of Cubist reliefs originally commissioned by Dr. Albert Barnes.

In the twenties and thirties Lipchitz created some of his most individual works and the exhibition will feature several from this period, such as the impressive lozenge shaped stone piece entitled Musical Instruments, 1923, and the provocative The Cry (The Couple), 1928-29, which like the Joy of Life, 1927, also in the show, reflects a deeply emotional reaction to events in his own life. In terms of subject matter, The Cryannounced an important new theme in his work. Lipchitz explained it this way: “I became intrigued with the idea of a loving embrace which was also a kind of conflict, a sort of love-hate relationship.” The idea of this clearly sexual work arose from the artist’s despondency at the deaths of his sister and father. Lipchitz said, “I made this sculpture as a kind of release, a defiance to show that in the midst of tragedy life must continue, that we must live and multiply. In the midst of death there is love and procreation and birth.” The idea of the embrace can be seen in two other significant works in this commanding, comprehensive show: Return of the Prodigal Son, 1931, and Mother and Child, 1949.

Pressetext

Jacques Lipchitz - Sculpture and Drawings 1912-1972