.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
拍品專文
Marini explored the equestrian theme throughout his artistic career. While his earlier depictions of the subject exuded a sense of stability and harmony, with the rider steady on the horse’s back, from 1951 onwards, Marini’s work was dominated by a sense of climax and crisis, where the rider was often in the process of being unseated by his steed. This shift in Marini’s rendering of the subject is often associated with a change in his world view, which became increasingly cynical and apocalyptical after World War II.
Gertrude marks this moment of rupture in the continuity of Marini’s work, and symbolizes a new beginning in his artistic career, where the rider no longer has the upper hand as the animal becomes wilder and increasingly intractable. Marini depicts the moment right after the fall, as the horse remains upright, exuding a powerful sense of pride and fervor. Indeed, both strength and agitation emanate from the horse’s demeanor: while his neck and head are extended tall, his back is arched, and his tail is raised. Moreover, the animal’s fore legs are jointly extended in front of him, slightly to the right, which adds to the form's overall sense of instability. This overarching feeling of crisis possibly hints to the greater sense of uncertainty which marked the beginning of the Cold War Era.
Drawing upon the canonical subject of the horse and rider, Marini took more modern approach to his treatment of the subject. Although the work is of an elegant and pleasant domestic size, reminiscent of bronze sculptures from the Renaissance, the proportions and the surface’s texture are extremely avant-garde. Marini conceived the horse’s form using simplified voluminous shapes, arched, stretched and bound together into a cavallo. Moreover, the sculpture’s surface is rough and coarse throughout: the horse’s skin is transformed into a textured landscape made of bumps and crevices, where light and shadow interplay, adding to the overall sense of movement and dynamism embodied in the sculpture.
Marini named this work after Gertrude Bernoudy, who acquired the present lot in the months following its execution. Born in Prague in 1915 into an important banking family, Bernoudy became a prominent modern art collector. She befriended Marini during her time in Paris in the 1930s, when she also frequented the studios of other modern artists, such as Pablo Picasso and Henry Moore. Gertrude, il piccolo cavallo remained in Bernoudy's collection until her death in 1994.
Gertrude marks this moment of rupture in the continuity of Marini’s work, and symbolizes a new beginning in his artistic career, where the rider no longer has the upper hand as the animal becomes wilder and increasingly intractable. Marini depicts the moment right after the fall, as the horse remains upright, exuding a powerful sense of pride and fervor. Indeed, both strength and agitation emanate from the horse’s demeanor: while his neck and head are extended tall, his back is arched, and his tail is raised. Moreover, the animal’s fore legs are jointly extended in front of him, slightly to the right, which adds to the form's overall sense of instability. This overarching feeling of crisis possibly hints to the greater sense of uncertainty which marked the beginning of the Cold War Era.
Drawing upon the canonical subject of the horse and rider, Marini took more modern approach to his treatment of the subject. Although the work is of an elegant and pleasant domestic size, reminiscent of bronze sculptures from the Renaissance, the proportions and the surface’s texture are extremely avant-garde. Marini conceived the horse’s form using simplified voluminous shapes, arched, stretched and bound together into a cavallo. Moreover, the sculpture’s surface is rough and coarse throughout: the horse’s skin is transformed into a textured landscape made of bumps and crevices, where light and shadow interplay, adding to the overall sense of movement and dynamism embodied in the sculpture.
Marini named this work after Gertrude Bernoudy, who acquired the present lot in the months following its execution. Born in Prague in 1915 into an important banking family, Bernoudy became a prominent modern art collector. She befriended Marini during her time in Paris in the 1930s, when she also frequented the studios of other modern artists, such as Pablo Picasso and Henry Moore. Gertrude, il piccolo cavallo remained in Bernoudy's collection until her death in 1994.