Beyond limits: Sotheby’s exhibition of Sculpture at Chatsworth, 2009

Antony Gormley, Angel of the North (Life-size Maquette), cast iron, 199.4 x 533.5 x 33.6 cm

Henry Moore, (1898-1986) Three Piece Reclining Figure: Draped from 1975

Manolo Valdés, Mariposas (Butterflies)

Beyond limits: Sotheby’s exhibition of Sculpture at Chatsworth, 2009

Exhibition Will Feature Extraordinary Works by Antony Gormley, HenryMoore, Marc Quinn, Manolo Valdés, Fernando Botero, Subodh Gupta, Ju Ming and Yayoi Kusama
September 14 – November 1

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SOTHEBY’S is delighted to announce that following the enormous popularity and success of its Beyond Limitsexhibitions at Chatsworth over the last three years, it will return to Derbyshire this autumn for a fourth installation ofmodern and contemporary sculpture set against the picturesque gardens of the ancestral home of the Duke andDuchess of Devonshire. The exhibition will open to the public on Monday, September 14, 2009 and will run untilSunday, November 1. This year will be Sotheby’s largest and most diverse selling exhibition of sculpture at Chatsworthto date

A life-size maquette for the world-renowned Angel of the North by Antony Gormley (b. 1950) is one of the undoubtedstar attractions and takes prime position at the end of Chatsworth’s majestic Canal Pond. Arguably the most widelyrecognisable public sculpture in the UK, Gormley’s Angel of the North has become an icon of the modern, industrial age.The 1:10 scale cast-iron maquette dates to 1997 and is the second cast in an edition of five. The maquette marks adefinitive stage in the development of Gormley’s iconic sculpture as it transcended from human to gargantuanproportions. The Angel takes as its principal concern the concept of the human condition and man’s will to overcomethe barriers of terrestrial existence. Gormley states: “The Angel was designed to mark a place and try to connect theearth and sky through its body.”

Henry Moore’s (1898-1986) Three Piece Reclining Figure:Draped from 1975 (illustrated left) is another highlight of theexhibition. The sculpture’s organic and fecund contours wereinspired by the artist’s acute appreciation of the sculpturaltradition – especially that of early Greek and ancient Mexicancarvings – tempered by his profound sensitivity to naturallandscapes and objects. The reclining female figure played animportant role in Moore’s vast oeuvre and Three PieceReclining Figure: Draped is an exceptional example of thisseminal motif.

Marc Quinn’s (b. 1964) monumental Archaeology of Desire is based upon a naturalistic Phalaenopsis, a genus of theorchid family, which has been rendered in exquisite detail. The delicate petals defy the properties of the bronze mediumin which they are cast to appear almost weightless and ethereal. On an immense scale – the sculpture measures 2.5metres in height – the flower takes on an ominous presence, resembling the wings of the Phalaena moth from which theorchid takes its name. The work belongs to a series of sculptures and paintings through which the artist explores theconcept of ideal beauty, especially through genetic modification.

Artists from some 14 countries will be represented in this year’s show and theseinclude a strong contingent of works by Hispanic and Asian artists.

Spain’s Manolo Valdés (b. 1942) leads the Hispanic offerings alongsideworks by fellow Spaniard Jaume Plensa (b. 1955) and Colombia’s FernandoBotero (b. 1932). Valdés is represented by two monumental bronzes,Mariposas (Butterflies) (illustrated right) and Ariadna I, and he is quoted assaying: “Seeing my work in such a spectacular setting is very rewarding. It isseldom that one may find such an ideal place as Chatsworth to show this typeof art (Sotheby’s at Auction, September 2009).”

Botero’s Dancers (illustrated right) depicting an embracingcouple has been installed high up on the Broad Walkcommanding views over the Derwent valley, while a speciallycommissioned series of six net curtains by Plensa, made up ofcharacters from the alphabet and entitled Song of Songs, will beinstalled in the hitherto moribund octagonal game larder built bythe 9th Duke.

Asian artists are represented by China’s Zhan Wang (b. 1962),India’s Subodh Gupta (b. 1964) (illustrated left), Japan’s YayoiKusama (b. 1929) and Taiwan’s Ju Ming (b. 1938) while IgorMitoraj (b. 1944) – the internationally renowned Polish sculptor– is the exhibition’s first-ever Eastern European artist. Tragic andbeautiful, his classicising sculptures question the often perilousrelationship between strength and virility on the one hand, andthe fragility of the human condition on the other.