Lot Essay
This sculpture is related to 'Mother and Child' and 'Seated Woman: One arm', also of 1956 (A. Bowness, Henry Moore Complete Sculpture 1955-64, vol.3, London, 1986, no's 409b and 410 respectively).
The theme of Mother and child is recurrent throughout Moore's work. He said "There are two particular motives or subjects which I have constantly used in my sculpture in the last twenty years: they are the Reclining Figure idea and the Mother and Child idea. (Perhaps of the two the Mother and Child has been the more fundamental obsession.)" (F. Russoli & D. Mitchinson (ed.), Henry Moore Sculpture with comments by the artist, Barcelona, 1981, p.115).
The theme of Mother and child is recurrent throughout Moore's work. He said "There are two particular motives or subjects which I have constantly used in my sculpture in the last twenty years: they are the Reclining Figure idea and the Mother and Child idea. (Perhaps of the two the Mother and Child has been the more fundamental obsession.)" (F. Russoli & D. Mitchinson (ed.), Henry Moore Sculpture with comments by the artist, Barcelona, 1981, p.115).