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拍品專文
Dina Vierny has kindly confirmed the authenticity of this piece.
As was only appropriate to the career of an artist who focused on the female form as a basis for his work, one of Maillol's earliest subjects in sculpture was the progenitor of all women - indeed, of all mankind - Eve. In Eve à la pomme, conceived in 1899, Maillol has taken this image - so central to worship and the Judaeo-Christian tradition, and a woman seen adorning many churches in Europe, not least in France - and has given it a striking humanity. Indeed, Maillol has gone a step further and imbued his subject with a raw sensuality. By deftly manipulating the flirtatious yet coy turn of her head and the angle at which she holds the fruit, he presents the viewer with a woman in complete control of her sexuality. Placing the fruit at waist level, Maillol hints at her use of this sexuality as a tool in convincing Adam to partake.
There is no condemnation of Eve in this work. Instead Maillol uses the ancient theme in a fresh, modern way as an interesting example of a sensual and confident woman. Maillol was driven both in his life and his art by an intense appreciation of women. The refined form shows her gesture to be almost the oldest in the world, a factor that was central to his choice of subject matter, for the artist saw ancient themes as universal and validated by their continuing survival. Eve features in Judaism, Christianity and Islam (although in the Muslim tradition she is not a temptress) and is therefore central to a great deal of civilisation - 'universal' to an extent. She was the perfect subject-matter for an artist interested in paring down both subject and sculpture to a point at which ancient truths can be revealed. Eve, the first woman, here becomes an abstraction of Woman. Where in his sculptures Maillol sought the source, the common denominator of his themes so that he could bring out their endemic qualities, so here he created a sculpture of Eve, making Woman his subject and not merely his means. This, then, is Maillol's sensual interpretation and celebration of women.
As was only appropriate to the career of an artist who focused on the female form as a basis for his work, one of Maillol's earliest subjects in sculpture was the progenitor of all women - indeed, of all mankind - Eve. In Eve à la pomme, conceived in 1899, Maillol has taken this image - so central to worship and the Judaeo-Christian tradition, and a woman seen adorning many churches in Europe, not least in France - and has given it a striking humanity. Indeed, Maillol has gone a step further and imbued his subject with a raw sensuality. By deftly manipulating the flirtatious yet coy turn of her head and the angle at which she holds the fruit, he presents the viewer with a woman in complete control of her sexuality. Placing the fruit at waist level, Maillol hints at her use of this sexuality as a tool in convincing Adam to partake.
There is no condemnation of Eve in this work. Instead Maillol uses the ancient theme in a fresh, modern way as an interesting example of a sensual and confident woman. Maillol was driven both in his life and his art by an intense appreciation of women. The refined form shows her gesture to be almost the oldest in the world, a factor that was central to his choice of subject matter, for the artist saw ancient themes as universal and validated by their continuing survival. Eve features in Judaism, Christianity and Islam (although in the Muslim tradition she is not a temptress) and is therefore central to a great deal of civilisation - 'universal' to an extent. She was the perfect subject-matter for an artist interested in paring down both subject and sculpture to a point at which ancient truths can be revealed. Eve, the first woman, here becomes an abstraction of Woman. Where in his sculptures Maillol sought the source, the common denominator of his themes so that he could bring out their endemic qualities, so here he created a sculpture of Eve, making Woman his subject and not merely his means. This, then, is Maillol's sensual interpretation and celebration of women.