Henry Moore Artwork Catalogue
Two Piece Reclining Figure: Points
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Moore’s enduring interest in the analogies between the reclining figure and landscape, and especially rock formations, are readily apparent in this work. As a child, Moore was fascinated by stone in sculpture, in architecture and in the landscape. The hills and dales around his hometown of Castleford, the stark slag heaps which had ‘the scale of the pyramids’, and rocky outcrops like Adel Crag and Brimham Rocks, all left a lasting impression.
In Two Piece Reclining Figure: Points two boulder-like forms metamorphose into a figurative composition. The uncanny abstraction is softened by a clearly visible face. The space between the points is carefully considered, creating a palpable sense of tension as the two parts reach towards each other.Exhibitions
Two Piece Reclining Figure: Points
Date1969
Artwork TypeSculpture
Catalogue NumberLH 606 cast 0
Mediabronze
Dimensionsartwork (including base): 240 × 365 × 183 cm
Signature
stamped Moore, 0/7
OwnershipThe Henry Moore Foundation: gift of the artist 1977
More InformationHenry Moore began breaking his reclining figures into two and three parts as early as 1934. Of the larger and later iterations of the idea Moore said:
I realised what an advantage a separated two-piece composition could have in relating figures to landscape. […] Knees and breasts are mountains. Once these parts become separated you don’t expect it to be a naturalistic figure; therefore, you can justifiably make it like a landscape or a rock.
Moore’s enduring interest in the analogies between the reclining figure and landscape, and especially rock formations, are readily apparent in this work. As a child, Moore was fascinated by stone in sculpture, in architecture and in the landscape. The hills and dales around his hometown of Castleford, the stark slag heaps which had ‘the scale of the pyramids’, and rocky outcrops like Adel Crag and Brimham Rocks, all left a lasting impression.
In Two Piece Reclining Figure: Points two boulder-like forms metamorphose into a figurative composition. The uncanny abstraction is softened by a clearly visible face. The space between the points is carefully considered, creating a palpable sense of tension as the two parts reach towards each other.
Exhibitions
Published References
Sculpture Summary/Cast