Upright motive E

Details

Henry Moore (British, 1898-1986)
Upright motive E
signed, numbered, and stamped with foundry mark 'Moore 2/9 NOACK BERLIN' (on the reverse)
bronze with brown patina
11 ½ x 2 x 2 1/8 in. (29.2 x 5.1 x 5.4 cm.)
Executed in 1968, this work is number two from an edition of nine.

Provenance

Anonymous sale; Sotheby's, New York, 8 October 1986, lot 331.

Literature

Alan Bowness, ed., Henry Moore, Complete Sculpture 1964-73, London, 1977, vol.4, p. 53, no. 590 (another cast illustrated).

Lot Essay

The genesis of Moore’s Upright Motif series began with a commission in Milan to create a sculpture in front of a new Olivetti building. The building’s horizontality drove Moore to think vertically. Balancing one form on top of another, Moore’s Upright Motifs grew organically, recalling totem poles from the indigenous cultures of the Pacific Northwest. Upright Motive E illustrates the conclusion of the series; the once disparate and isolated shapes have coalesced into a fluid, yet figural form. The fully realized sculptures from the series can be found in public collections across the globe.

More from Interiors

View All