Giacomo Manzù

Brook Street Gallery, London
Acquired from the above by the grandmother of the present owner circa 1970

New York, Gallery Rosenberg, Giacomo Manzu, 1968, illustrated in the catalogue

Deep brown patina. Apart from an area of verdigris to the base, and several tiny losses to the patina in the robe, this work is in good condition.
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NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The theme of cardinals, inspired by church dignitaries often encountered on the streets of Manzù's native Bergamo, was a dominant subject in the artist's œuvre. It provided Manzù with a source of endless inspiration and experimentation: whilst some have a volumetric pyramidal shape conveying a sense of earthbound monumentality, others represent an elegant, elongated figure pointed to the heavens.

 

Discussing the Cardinale series, John Rewald wrote: 'The first drawing of the subject dated from 1934, the first sculpture from 1938. Between 1949 and 1950 the first large cardinal was created, and this was followed one after another by many more, sitting and standing, small, large and even more than life-size... In Manzù's hands the cardinals were transformed into compact forceful volumes enlivened by extremely tender modelling and generously draped folds. The massiveness of the volume is stressed by the economy of lines and the simplicity of plastic means' (J. Rewald, Giacomo Manzù, Greenwich, 1966, p. 59).