Selection
Reclining Figure
Henry Moore2025.09.01 ~ 2025.09.07
Work Description
- Media Bronze
- Location Signiel Seoul 79F Salon de SIGNIEL
“There are three fundamental poses of the human figure. One is standing. The other is seated, and the third is lying down [...]. Of the three poses, the reclining figure gives the most freedom, compositionally and spatially.”
HENRY MOORE
Among Moore’s most enduring motifs is the reclining female figure, a subject that captivated the artist throughout his career. From the 1920s until his final years, he returned to this theme repeatedly, reimagining and refining it through a process of abstraction, division, and reinvention. The result is a body of work that distills the human form to its elemental essence, capturing both its physicality and its poetic resonance.
The present work exemplifies Moore’s mastery of this iconic subject. By this stage in his career, Moore had achieved a remarkable fluency in his practice, a point he himself acknowledged: "there's no need any longer to search for a personal style: I find work comes naturally". This effortless command is evident in the sculpture’s rhythmic undulations, where form and space intertwine with a sense of inevitability. The work synthesizes the formal innovations Moore explored over decades, showcasing his ability to balance abstraction with a deeply humanistic sensibility.
Moore’s fascination with the reclining figure began around 1924, when he carved his first iteration of the subject. Its development was influenced by Moore’s engagement with art history. Yet, for Moore, the reclining figure was more than a historical reference; it was an archetype that offered boundless possibilities for formal experimentation. Freed from the constraints of naturalistic representation, Moore used the motif to explore composition, space, and the interplay of mass and void. As he once remarked, "I want to be quite free of having to find a ‘reason’ for doing the Reclining Figures, and freer still of having to find a ‘meaning’ for them."
Inquiry: Info.seoul@sothebys.com
HENRY MOORE
Among Moore’s most enduring motifs is the reclining female figure, a subject that captivated the artist throughout his career. From the 1920s until his final years, he returned to this theme repeatedly, reimagining and refining it through a process of abstraction, division, and reinvention. The result is a body of work that distills the human form to its elemental essence, capturing both its physicality and its poetic resonance.
The present work exemplifies Moore’s mastery of this iconic subject. By this stage in his career, Moore had achieved a remarkable fluency in his practice, a point he himself acknowledged: "there's no need any longer to search for a personal style: I find work comes naturally". This effortless command is evident in the sculpture’s rhythmic undulations, where form and space intertwine with a sense of inevitability. The work synthesizes the formal innovations Moore explored over decades, showcasing his ability to balance abstraction with a deeply humanistic sensibility.
Moore’s fascination with the reclining figure began around 1924, when he carved his first iteration of the subject. Its development was influenced by Moore’s engagement with art history. Yet, for Moore, the reclining figure was more than a historical reference; it was an archetype that offered boundless possibilities for formal experimentation. Freed from the constraints of naturalistic representation, Moore used the motif to explore composition, space, and the interplay of mass and void. As he once remarked, "I want to be quite free of having to find a ‘reason’ for doing the Reclining Figures, and freer still of having to find a ‘meaning’ for them."
Inquiry: Info.seoul@sothebys.com
About the Artist
Henry Moore stands as one of the most transformative figures in 20th-century sculpture, a visionary whose work redefined the parameters of modern art. His signature semi-abstract forms, often rendered in bronze and stone, are celebrated for their organic fluidity and profound engagement with the human figure.
Born in Yorkshire, he studied at the Leeds School of Art and the Royal College of Art before becoming one of Europe's leading avant-garde sculptors in the 1930s. His career spanned sculpture, drawing, printmaking, and textile design, achieving global recognition in his lifetime and shaping a British sculptural renaissance.
Moore’s works can be found in the collections of globally renowned institutions such as the Henry Moore Foundation in Leeds, Tate Britain in London, the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Samsung Collection in Korea, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, among many others.
Born in Yorkshire, he studied at the Leeds School of Art and the Royal College of Art before becoming one of Europe's leading avant-garde sculptors in the 1930s. His career spanned sculpture, drawing, printmaking, and textile design, achieving global recognition in his lifetime and shaping a British sculptural renaissance.
Moore’s works can be found in the collections of globally renowned institutions such as the Henry Moore Foundation in Leeds, Tate Britain in London, the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Samsung Collection in Korea, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, among many others.
Henry Moore (b. 1898 -1986, England)
