MAGDALENA ABAKANOWICZ (Polish 1930 - 2017)
Piccola - 1991
Bronze with brown patina
Monogrammed, titled, and dated on verso along base, and with Venturi Foundry mark
70 inches x 12 inches x 7 inches (178cm x 31cm x 18cm)

Provenance
Acquired by the present owner directly from Dorothy Goldeen Gallery, Santa Monica, California and accompanied with a copy of original receipt of purchase dated December 10, 1993.

Polish sculpture and fiber artist Magadalena Abakanowicz was born into a noble family in Poland in 1930. When Germany invaded Poland just 10 years later, Magdalena would have her comfortable and well-to-do life torn out from under her as she was exposed first hand to the awful violence of the Nazis, and tragically saw her mother shot and killed. After the end of the war, political unrest continued, and Poland endured decades of Communist control. The effects of these traumas would eventually be reflected in both Magdalena?s resilient spirit and fascinating art.

Magdalena graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw in 1954 and began working as an independent artist. Early in her career, she wanted to create large three-dimensional works, however both space and supplies were strictly limited. Resourceful Magdalena did not let this stop her, and began to create what are now known as Abakans, which are massive fiber installation pieces. By unraveling and re-weaving burlap sacks, she was able to create massive, impactful, three dimensional works with very little resources, which could be folded up and stored like a blanket when not displayed.

Gradually, throughout the 70?s and 80?s, her work evolved from soft and pliable construction to hard surfaced, and much of her later work was made of bronze, stone, iron, or concrete, as we see here in the offered lot. The 70?s and 80?s also saw huge social and political change in Poland, as the end of communism drew near. It was from this time that we start to see headless human figures in Magdalena?s work, including the notable Backs (1976-80), The Crowds (ongoing from 1985), and Bambini (1998-99). In each of these renowned works, Magdalena portrays large counts of massive humanoid sculptures in seemingly repetitive form. However, upon closer inspection one will find that each figure has deliberately and intimately been created with unique characteristics. They are not all the same.

Through the portrayal of her massive headless figures, Magdalena has created a society of related creatures who have no voice or autonomy, but are unique individuals none-the-less. Unmoving, they are echoes of the past, but also permanently affixed in the present. In a world of people so divided, these figures convey that although we are each unique to some small degree, our similarities are so much greater than our differences.

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