.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Ensayo del lote
Barry Flanagan’s Virtue is one of three closely related works, conceived in 1993, that play on the theme of divination using the artist’s celebrated figure of the lean, anthropomorphic hare. Virtue, alongside Humility and Awe, all present variations of a reverential hare figure, each striking a slightly different pose while personifying a specific expression of piety, and each holding a different ritual object: divining rod for Virtue, divining stick for Humility, and circular disc for Awe. However, Flanagan’s signature irreverent humour subtly undercuts moralistic representations, as in the case of Humility, where the hare’s head is lowered in an expression of humble modesty, but the placement of the divining stick lends a suggestive element to the sculpture. In Virtue, the nimble creature stands tall on its hind legs, head and ears held high, all energy focused on the tip of the divining rod, lending the solemn ritual an air that is at once earnest and knowingly absurd.
Flanagan’s hare has come to represent a form of existential freedom characterised by mischief, enigma and creativity. Hares have held different connotations throughout Christianity and Art History: on the one hand – a symbol of vitality, rebirth, and resurrection, with connection to Easter and the Resurrection of Christ; on the other hand – unbridled sexuality and lust. Hares are also known as mystical, pagan, nocturnal creatures, adding an esoteric edge to the hare mythology. For Flanagan, the motif of the hare was endlessly productive as a personal totem of creativity, imbued with wit, playfulness, cunning and individual liberty. It is likely that the free-thinking anti-rationalist Flanagan saw in the hare his own spirit animal. As Clarrie Wallis puts it, ‘in [the hare] Flanagan found the perfect metaphor for his own elusive character’ (C. Wallis, ‘The business in the making’, in Barry Flanagan: Early Works 1965-1982, London, Tate, 2011, p. 30).
Flanagan instilled his hare with both irony and an underlying depth, seamlessly blending humour with spiritual substance. As Tim Hilton observes, Flanagan was an unconventional sculptor, being someone who ‘touches things lightly, to keep them new and allow them their own eloquence’ (T. Hilton, ‘Less a slave to other people’s thinking…’, in exhibition catalogue, Barry Flanagan Sculpture, London, British Council, 1983, p. 7). Although Virtue does not treat its religious subject in total earnest, it nonetheless ponders on the timeless questions of faith, devotion and emotional transcendence. The dynamic and humorous energy of the mischievous hare helps add a playful edge to these dilemmas. Virtue thus reflects Flanagan’s belief that the imaginary and the absurd can offer profound insights into reality.
Produced during a highly rewarding period of international acclaim, the sculpture featured in a major 1993 retrospective of Flanagan’s work at the Fundación ‘la Caixa’ in Madrid, organised in collaboration with The British Council, before touring to the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Nantes in 1994. It represents the artist at his clearest and most aesthetically articulated, where his wit, imagination and spiritual inquiry converge with grace.
Flanagan’s hare has come to represent a form of existential freedom characterised by mischief, enigma and creativity. Hares have held different connotations throughout Christianity and Art History: on the one hand – a symbol of vitality, rebirth, and resurrection, with connection to Easter and the Resurrection of Christ; on the other hand – unbridled sexuality and lust. Hares are also known as mystical, pagan, nocturnal creatures, adding an esoteric edge to the hare mythology. For Flanagan, the motif of the hare was endlessly productive as a personal totem of creativity, imbued with wit, playfulness, cunning and individual liberty. It is likely that the free-thinking anti-rationalist Flanagan saw in the hare his own spirit animal. As Clarrie Wallis puts it, ‘in [the hare] Flanagan found the perfect metaphor for his own elusive character’ (C. Wallis, ‘The business in the making’, in Barry Flanagan: Early Works 1965-1982, London, Tate, 2011, p. 30).
Flanagan instilled his hare with both irony and an underlying depth, seamlessly blending humour with spiritual substance. As Tim Hilton observes, Flanagan was an unconventional sculptor, being someone who ‘touches things lightly, to keep them new and allow them their own eloquence’ (T. Hilton, ‘Less a slave to other people’s thinking…’, in exhibition catalogue, Barry Flanagan Sculpture, London, British Council, 1983, p. 7). Although Virtue does not treat its religious subject in total earnest, it nonetheless ponders on the timeless questions of faith, devotion and emotional transcendence. The dynamic and humorous energy of the mischievous hare helps add a playful edge to these dilemmas. Virtue thus reflects Flanagan’s belief that the imaginary and the absurd can offer profound insights into reality.
Produced during a highly rewarding period of international acclaim, the sculpture featured in a major 1993 retrospective of Flanagan’s work at the Fundación ‘la Caixa’ in Madrid, organised in collaboration with The British Council, before touring to the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Nantes in 1994. It represents the artist at his clearest and most aesthetically articulated, where his wit, imagination and spiritual inquiry converge with grace.