DAME BARBARA HEPWORTH | Mother and Child

William Darby 
Steve Tokaruk, London, where acquired by the present owner, April 1975

The sculpture appears sound. There are a few scattered extremely minor imperfections to the polished bronze, primarily to the back of the sculpture, as a result of the casting process. Subject to the above, the work appears in excellent overall condition. The sculpture is attached to a slate base. Please telephone the department on +44 (0) 207 293 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."

Mother and Child is an example of Barbara Hepworth working within one of the most important and consistent themes of her career. It was conceived in 1934 as an ironstone carving, and then cast in 1972 by William Darby with Barbara Hepworth. The work is a graceful visual manifestation of Hepworth’s intense ambition in both the 1930s, and in the 1970s.

Whilst a student at the Royal College of Art, Hepworth broke away from the prescribed technique of modelling, and instead pursued the physical experiment of hand carving directly on to the material. Hepworth was inspired by the precedent for carving set by the so called ‘Primitive’ examples of African, Chinese and Cycladic sculpture on display at the British Museum. Direct carving then went on to define her career and legacy. Looking at the work we recognise the motif of the mother and child seated together in a rounded and smoothed form, yet a piercing distinguishes them.  Typical of Hepworth we also recognise natural themes and threads to her sculpture. The form is sophisticatedly ambiguous, aligning with Hepworth’s belief that, ‘The meaning of art’ was to ‘affirm and continue life in its highest form.’ (J.P Holdin, Barbara Hepworth and the Mediterranean Spirit, Marmo, Rivista internazionale d'arte e architettura, Milan, no. 3, 1964, p.105).

Additionally, in 1933 Hepworth travelled to Europe with Ben Nicholson, where she met Georges Braque, Piet Mondrian, and had the opportunity to visit the studios of Picasso, Constantin Brâncuși and Jean Arp. This influx of sculptural stimulus had a profound effect on her practice, we can see this manifested in Mother and Child. Hepworth begins to move away from the representational aspect of her earlier work, present in previous works such as Two Heads, 1932. Comparing the two pieces we see that Hepworth has left behind more obvious forms of figurative mark making, and instead dropped all reference to the features of her human subjects. Thus, Mother and Child is a refined abstract form, fusing representational and abstract elements, directly inspired by her European travels.