Opening soon at David Findlay Jr. Gallery in New York is delightful exhibition of works from 20th-century sculptor Gaston Lachaise.
Belonging to the generation of artists who revolutionized European art during the first half of the 20th century — also including Picasso, Braque, and Brancusi — Gaston Lachaise (1882-1935) is often credited with having a powerful influence on the female nude in modern sculpture and fine art.
Typical of Lachaise’s style, his female forms often display well-endowed and voluptuous forms. His most notable work, titled “Standing Woman,” is a quintessential example. In addition to his sculptures of female nudes, the artist was a prolific portraitist who executed several busts for famous literary celebrities of his era, including Marianne Moore and E. E. Cummings.
Opening January 7 and on view through February 13, David Findlay Jr. Gallery in New York City is overjoyed to be presenting a number of Lachaise’s bronzes. Of particular beauty is the artist’s 1917 bronze “Equestrienne.” As expected, the viewer discovers a nude female with curvaceous hips, large breasts, and tapered limbs. However, the piece offers a tantalizing glimpse into how the sculptor’s avant-garde style was translated to the animal world, with this piece displaying the female subject on horseback. Chiefly noticeable is the fluidity of the animal’s silhouette, how the arched neck and rounded rump echo the features of the female subject. The eye enjoys an easy and graceful journey around the piece with few breaks and interruptions.
Of the sculptor’s legacy, the gallery writes, “considered by critics and audiences alike to be one of the pioneering sculptors in the United States, Lachaise was given exhibitions at New York’s most prestigious galleries, including Stieglitz’s Intimate Gallery and the Brummer Gallery. In 1935, Lachaise was awarded a retrospective exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, the first exhibition given to a living artist by that institution. Less than a year later, Lachaise’s career was cut short when he passed away at the age of fifty-three.”
To learn more, visit David Findlay Jr. Gallery.
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Lachaise
