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拍品專文
‘The later idols are overt combinations of abstract figures, primitive tools, modern objects and religious statues, exploring ideas of change and metamorphosis and the relationship between the past, present and future’ (Amanda A. Davidson)
Small Female Figure is a striking example of William Turnbull’s later sculptures, which builds on the Idol series he created from 1955-1957. Here, Turnbull explores his long-standing interest in metamorphosis, drawing on a series of Western and non-Western references. During this time ancient tool forms and Cycladic figures coalesce, creating mystically imbued utilitarian objects, which are often referenced in the titles of his works, with classical names such as Agamemnon, Oedipus and Leda. Here Turnbull references the female figure, a subject he would continue to explore throughout his life.
In the present work, Turnbull abstracts his figure’s form, delineating her arm as curvilinear handle like shapes, which protrude from her slender torso, evocative of Cycladic sculpture. The lack of narrative, along with the attention to the scored and weathered surface, gives the work a timeless quality. Here, Turnbull references ancient totemic works. Amanda Davidson argues this quality contributes to the lasting power of these later works, ‘Many of these new idols are highly abstracted figures, created from simple forms. However, rather than reduced the range of images and interpretations of the works, this simplification of the shapes and the smoother textures of these idols has intensified their effect. By reducing any naturalistic element to a minimum, this formal concentration focuses attention on the symbolic flexibility of the works and the archetypical nature of their shapes’ (A. A. Davidson, The Sculpture of William Turnbull, Much Hadham, 2005, p. 63).
Small Female Figure is a striking example of William Turnbull’s later sculptures, which builds on the Idol series he created from 1955-1957. Here, Turnbull explores his long-standing interest in metamorphosis, drawing on a series of Western and non-Western references. During this time ancient tool forms and Cycladic figures coalesce, creating mystically imbued utilitarian objects, which are often referenced in the titles of his works, with classical names such as Agamemnon, Oedipus and Leda. Here Turnbull references the female figure, a subject he would continue to explore throughout his life.
In the present work, Turnbull abstracts his figure’s form, delineating her arm as curvilinear handle like shapes, which protrude from her slender torso, evocative of Cycladic sculpture. The lack of narrative, along with the attention to the scored and weathered surface, gives the work a timeless quality. Here, Turnbull references ancient totemic works. Amanda Davidson argues this quality contributes to the lasting power of these later works, ‘Many of these new idols are highly abstracted figures, created from simple forms. However, rather than reduced the range of images and interpretations of the works, this simplification of the shapes and the smoother textures of these idols has intensified their effect. By reducing any naturalistic element to a minimum, this formal concentration focuses attention on the symbolic flexibility of the works and the archetypical nature of their shapes’ (A. A. Davidson, The Sculpture of William Turnbull, Much Hadham, 2005, p. 63).