Dame Barbara Hepworth

Gimpel Fils, London, where acquired by the father of the present owner, June 1964

London, Whitechapel Gallery, Barbara Hepworth: an Exhibition of Sculpture from 1952-62, 10th May - 8th June 1962, cat. no.71, illustrated (another cast);
Zurich, Gimpel-Hanover Galerie, Barbara Hepworth, 16th November - 11th January 1963, cat. no.10 (another cast);
Bradford, Bradford Art Gallery, Spring 1963;
London, Gimpel Fils, Barbara Hepworth: Sculptures & Drawings, 2nd - 27th June 1964, cat. no.10, illustrated on the cover;
Copenhagen, Kunstforeningen, Barbara Hepworth: Retrospective 1935-64, 24th September - 18th October 1964, cat. no.26 (another cast);
Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh International, October 1964 - January 1965, cat. no.248 (another cast);
London, Gimpel Fils, Collectors' Choice XIII, March - April 1965, cat. no.44 (another cast);
Otterlo, Rijksmuseum Kroller-Muller, Barbara Hepworth: Retrospective 1935-64, 8th May - 18th July 1965, cat. no.32 (another cast);
London, Tate Gallery, Barbara Hepworth, 3rd April - 19th May 1968, cat. no.121 (another cast);
Abbotsholme, Uttoxeter, Barbara Hepworth: Sculpture and Lithographs, January - February 1970, with Arts Council Tour;
Liverpool, Tate Gallery, Barbara Hepworth: A Retrospective, 14th September - 4th December 1994, cat. no.65, illustrated p.105 (another cast).

Alan Bowness (ed.), The Sculpture of Barbara Hepworth 1960-69, Praeger Publishers, New York & Washington, 1971, BH311, illustrated pl.55 (another cast).

The sculpture has recently been cleaned and rewaxed. There are two faintly visible 'strap' marks across the base where the sculpture was formerly secured. Generally the sculpture is in good overall condition. Please telephone the department on 0207 293 6424 if you have any questions regarding the present work.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
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."

After moving to St Ives with her husband Ben Nicholson at the outbreak of war in 1939, Barbara Hepworth was particularly inspired by the landscape of the West Country and the present sculpture belongs to a small group of large-scale works which take the interpretation of the land and sea as their theme. Titles of her pieces often contain geographical references and Chûn Quoit is a monumental rock formation, believed to be a chambered tomb, located on the moors of Cornwall. Resembling in many ways a large mushroom, it is the only prehistoric megalithic structure in the area to retain its capstone and still acts as a place of pilgrimage for modern day druids. While the single forms that appeared throughout Hepworth's work from the 1930s onwards tended towards the tall and vertical, the broad, simplified, and slightly unbalanced shape of the present work seems to reflect the shield like stones visible in this ancient construction.

Single Form (Chûn Quoit) is related to one of Hepworth's most well-known and significant public commissions, the monumental Single Form (fig.1, BH325), which was installed in the plaza outside the United Nations Building in New York on the 11th of June 1964.  The United Nations piece was commissioned by the Jacob and Hilda Blaustein Foundation as a memorial to Dag Hammarskjöld, Hepworth's close friend and Secretary General of the United Nations from 1953 up until his tragic death in a plane crash on the 18^th of September 1961. Prior to Hammerskjöld's death, the two had been in talks concerning a large scale commission for the United Nations, although Henry Moore was also under consideration for the assignment. Hepworth writes in her Pictorial Autobiography:

'Before Dag Hammarskjöld's death we had discussed together the kind of form he had envisaged to go in front of the Secretariat. When I heard of his death, and in order to assuage my grief, I immediately made a large new version of Single Form just for myself. It was 10ft 6in high.

Later, when the Secretary General heard of this, he asked me if I would go to New York and discuss the project as Dag Hammarskjold had envisaged it.

Between us all we arrived at the right scale and position; and I met with the utmost kindness and help. Then for some months I had to work to the scale of 21feet and bring into my mind everything my father had taught me about stress and strain and gravity and windforce. Finally, all the many parts were got out of St. Ives safely, and when assembled in a big London studio they stood up in perfect balance. This was a magic moment. Finally the whole work was complete, and went to New York.' (Barbara Hepworth, Barbara Hepworth: A Pictorial Autobiography, Adams & Dart, Bath, 1970, p.94)

We are grateful to Dr Sophie Bowness for her kind assistance in cataloguing the present work.