Germaine Richier

Germaine Richier’s evocative, almost Surrealist, sculptures place her alongside Pablo Picasso and Henry Moore as one of the most prominent 20th-century sculptors who looked to free the art form from traditional constraints of representation. Born in 1904 in Grans, France, Richier studied at the École des Beaux Arts in Montpellier and later under Antoine Bourdelle, a pupil of Auguste Rodin, which grounded her in a strong classical technique that she later evolved into her unique, avant-garde style.

While working in Bourdelle’s studio, Richier met Alberto Giacometti, whose influence can be found in the elongated forms and textured surfaces of her sculptures. Richier’s sculptures frequently incorporate elements of nature and mythology, reflecting both her mastery of form and her innovative spirit.

During World War II, she met Italian sculptor Marino Marini in exile in Switzerland. After the war, her style moved away from figuration towards exploration bodily deformation in her fantastical creatures and subjects. Powerfully expressive, in terms of both form and texture, Richier portrayed the haunting and deeply moving battle for survival that humanity has faced throughout its history.

Her sculptural process began with painting ‘construction’ lines of the contours of the body directly onto the surface of the clay. Then, with her fingers, Richier manoeuvred the moulded material slowly into the form that she wanted, with direct pressure and force to manipulate each contour until she achieved the desired effect.

Throughout her career, Richier has gained recognition and acclaim. In 1936 she won the Prix Blumenthal, a grant awarded to promising young French artists. Richier became the first female sculptor exhibited in the Musée National d’Art Moderne in Paris in 1956. After her death in 1959, retrospectives of her work have been held at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection (2006–07) and the Centre Pompidou (2023). Her sculptures belong to the collections of the Tuileries Garden in Paris, the Musée Fabre in Montpellier and the Tate in London.