Lot 452 D

Throughout his life Gerhard Marcks's main theme was the human being. He repeatedly sought to grasp this subject more closely through his sculptural work. Several of these figures have a Biblical, mythological or classical background; others are portraits or were chosen entirely freely. From 1945 onwards he created a substantial number of images of girls, and the “Stehende mit Locken” is one of them.
In a slight ponderation, with her head gently bowed and her right hand laid protectively beneath her chest, we perceive a graceful movement of the youthfully beautiful body. The young woman is not an Amazon but a charming Grace, who presents herself to the viewer with complete self-assurance. In doing so she appears simultaneously contemplative and extremely alert. Marcks was inspired by the art of antiquity and, with regard to poses, he repeatedly explored the themes of balance, stability, center of gravity and the relationship between tension and relaxation. The artist's occupation with antiquity is also demonstrated by the journeys that he made to educate himself in Greece in the late 1950s - as an artist who was then over 70 years old. There he found the sources of inspiration that he was able to convert into his own sculptures full of subtlety and expressiveness. Marcks owned a summer home in Greece from 1964 onwards, which may illustrate his love of Greek culture.
In 1969 he once again reworked “Stehende mit Locken”, particularly in the area of the neck (cf. Rudloff 846).