Ernst Barlach:
Sculpture "Dreaming Woman" (1912), bronze reduction
Ernst Barlach:
Sculpture "Dreaming Woman" (1912), bronze reduction

Quick info

ars mundi Exclusive Edition limited, 980 copies | numbered | signed | hallmarked | bronze | handmade | patinated | reduction | size 31 x 14.5 x 11.5 cm (w/h/d) | weight approx. 3 kg | certificate | numbered

incl. tax plus Shipping

Product no. IN-712969

Delivery time: Immediately deliverable

Sculpture "Dreaming Woman" (1912), bronze reduction
Ernst Barlach: Sculpture "Dreaming Woman" (1912), bronze...

Detailed description

Sculpture "Dreaming Woman" (1912), bronze reduction

Barlach's massive wooden sculpture "Dreaming Woman" from 1912 is a work of art with enormous charisma. The female figure reclines oblivious to the world, with her knees slightly drawn up, her eyes closed, her gaze focused on herself, her head is relaxed with soft facial features, and her hands are resting on her lap - a symbol of the greatest serenity.

Barlach devoted himself to the dream and the dreamer several times during this period. Indeed, on the eve of the First World War, it was an almost typical motif in many fields of art. However, in contrast to his "Dreamer" from the same year, there is not a trace of desperate foreboding or fearful uncertainty about the "Dreaming Woman". Instead, the (daydreaming) figure is totally at peace, seemingly unassailable by all the dangers of the world.

Like all Barlach sculptures, the "Dreaming Woman" lives from the sovereignly staged contrast of strictly reduced form and strong emotional experience. Barlach once commented laconically that the form of his sculptures "corresponds to the soft waves of the Mecklenburg landscape". But the sculptor's great art consists in creating complex landscapes of the soul before the viewer's eyes in this almost primitively restrained stylistic expression.

Sculpture in fine bronze, cast by hand using the Lost-Wax-Process and patinated. Directly moulded from the original and reduced in size (reduction). Limited edition of 980 copies, individually numbered and with the signature "E. Barlach" taken from the original as well as the foundry hallmark. ars mundi Exclusive Edition, published in cooperation with the Ernst Barlach Society. With numbered certificate of authenticity and limitation. Size 31 x 14.5 x 11.5 cm (w/h/d), weight approx. 3 kg.

Portrait of the artist Ernst Barlach

About Ernst Barlach

1870-1938, sculptor, writer and draughtsman

Ernst Barlach was born on January 2, 1870, in Wedel, Germany, and died on October 24, 1938, in Rostock, Germany. He holds an outstandingly special position within German Expressionism. As a graphic artist, draughtsman, writer and, in particular, a sculptor, Barlach created milestones in art history. Barlach's sculptural works of art have a special effect because they seek extreme experience of limits and their representation. They are works of multi-layered meaning with which he foregrounded the essence of the human being and that what stands above the self and the world.

Barlach's intention is rooted in the depths, the inner self. Shaped by war and challenging living conditions, he experiences both suffering and happiness. The human being is always the focus of his work: Ecce homo.

"I desire nothing more than to be a good and true artist as best I can. I believe that what cannot be expressed through the work can pass into the possession of another through forms. My pleasure and creative impulse continually revolve around the problems of the meaning of life and the other great mountains in the spiritual realm." (Ernst Barlach)

Ernst Barlach became an honorary member of the Academy of Fine Arts, Munich, in 1925. In 1933, he was appointed Knight of the Peace Class of the Order "Pour le mérite". In 1937, the National Socialists removed his works from public collections and spaces for being "degenerate art". Ernst Barlach died in Rostock on October 24, 1938.

Today, Ernst Barlach's works are an integral part of leading museums and collections and - if available - fetch record amounts at auction.

"The Singing Man" became Ernst Barlach's best-known sculpture, an icon of Modernism. It adorns illustrated books and posters worldwide, and the original edition is a permanent part of the collections of the world's major museums, including the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.

Recommendations