"Sir Alfred Gilbert: Maquettes for the Sam Wilson Chimneypiece c.1908-14."
2000-07-07 until 2000-09-01
Henry Moore Institute
Leeds, , UK

Gilbert’s Maquettes for the Sam Wilson Chimneypiece c.1908-14 feature groups of caryatid figures from parts of the chimneypiece originally housed in Rutland Lodge, Leeds and now in the Leeds City Art Gallery. Like the previous work in Eternal Return by Rodin, the female nude is the vehicle for moral, mortal, and sexual sentiments.

The bodies of idealised youthful naked women represent pure and innocent love, winged Eros figures stand for erotic love, and death’s heads signify the passing of time and death itself. Together, the three forms consolidate contradictory forces related to questions of morality and mortality, as they were intended to be seen in their original context, as parts of an intimidating piece of domestic furniture.

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