Sculpture "Monkey with Skull" (1892-93), bronze version
Sculpture "Monkey with Skull" (1892-93), bronze version
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limited, 980 copies | numbered | bronze + diabase | handmade | patinated | partly polished and gold-plated | size 17 x 26 x 17 cm (w/h/d) | weight approx. 5 kg | certificate
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Sculpture "Monkey with Skull" (1892-93), bronze version
With his sculpture "Monkey with Skull", philosopher and sculptor Wolfgang Hugo Rheinhold (1853-1900) casts the debate surrounding Charles Darwin's work in an almost iconographic form. Even his contemporaries attested that, with his diverse allusions, he had created a "masterpiece of superior humour." After all, not only Shakespeare's "to be or not to be", but also Rodin's "Thinker" and circulating Darwin caricatures shine through.
But Rheinhold's monkey is far more than humour in cast bronze from our ancestor's time. After all, the monkey wielding a tool for measuring skulls is not only sitting on Darwin's groundbreaking work but also the Bible. And upon closer inspection, the "Inscriptio", the inscription, turns out to be the key to the allegory: "Eritis sicut deus", meaning "You will be like God". With these words, the devil lures Adam and Eve to the Tree of Knowledge, leading, as well known, to their expulsion from paradise. In the end, then, the sculptor Rheinhold once again proves to be a philosopher: The "Monkey with a Skull" tells us that those who seek knowledge must face consequences. This is one of, if not "the" fundamental experiences of the 20th century, from the atomic bomb to genetic engineering.
Sculpture in fine bronze, cast using the Lost-Wax-Process, partially patinated by hand, polished and gilded. On a black diabase pedestal. Size 17 x 26 x 17 cm (w/h/d), weight approx. 5 kg. Limited to 980 copies, numbered. With certificate.
Producer: ars mundi Edition Max Büchner GmbH, Bödekerstraße 13, 30161 Hanover, Germany Email: info@arsmundi.de
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About Wolfgang Hugo Rheinhold
1853-1900
They have their fates – not only the books but also the works of art and artists. The fate of the "Ape with Skull" and its creator Wolfgang Hugo Rheinhold couldn’t be more different. Immediately after Rheinhold presented the sculpture at the Great Berlin Art Exhibition in 1893 as his final project for his studies at the Berlin Royal Academy of Fine Arts, the Berlin sculpture foundry Gladenbeck & Sohn offered to produce licensed casts. These went not only to private collectors but also to many international scientific institutions. They can still be admired today: In the Royal College of Surgeons in London, in the Medico-Chirurgical Society in Aberdeen, in the Boston Medical Library and the Department of Zoology at the University of Edinburgh. The most famous location is probably a Russian specimen: It adorned (and still adorns) Vladimir Ilyich Lenin's desk.
While the fame and notoriety of the sculpture grew unceasingly, Rheinhold was almost forgotten after his early death. It was only following an exhibition in Aberdeen in 1989 that serious biographical research began. Most of what has been gathered about Rheinhold since then has only been published in the last 15 years.
Rheinhold was not only a sculptor but also studied philosophy. Moreover, he was a co-founder of a "German Society for Ethical Culture". Perhaps this explains the dazzling richness of meaning of his "Ape". It not only represents a thoroughly humorous commentary on the Darwinism debate but at the same time appeals to the ethical responsibility of all science with the Genesis quote "Eritis sicut deus" ("You will be as God").
An alloy of copper with other metals (especially with tin) used since ancient times. It is an ideal metal for high-quality artistic castings, capable of enduring for millennia.
When casting bronze, the artist usually applies the lost-wax technique which is dating back more than 5000 years. This is the best, but also the most complex method of producing sculptures.
First, the artist forms a model of their work. This model is embedded in a liquid silicone rubber mass. Once the material has solidified, the model is cut out, leaving a negative mould. Liquid wax is then poured into the negative mould. After cooling down, the wax cast is removed from the mould, provided with sprues and dipped into ceramic mass. The ceramic mass is hardened in a kiln, where the wax melts away (lost mould).
Finally, the negative mould is ready, into which the 1400° C hot molten bronze is poured. After the bronze had cooled down, the ceramic shell is broken apart, reavoling the sculpture.
Next, the sprues are removed, the surfaces are polished, patinated and numbered by the artist or by a specialist, following their instructions. Thus, each casting is an original work.
For lower-quality bronze castings, the sand casting method is often used, which, however, does not achieve the results of a more elaborate lost-wax technique in terms of surface characteristics and quality.
Term for an art object (sculpture, installation) that, according to the artist’s intention, is produced in multiple copies within a limited and numbered edition.
Multiples enable the "democratization" of art by making the work accessible and affordable for a wider audience.
A plastic work of sculptural art made of wood, stone, ivory, bronze or other metals.
While sculptures made of wood, ivory, or stone are carved directly from the material block, in bronze casting, a working model is prepared at first. Usually, it is made of clay or other easily mouldable materials.
The prime time of sculpture after the Greek and Roman antiquity was the Renaissance. Impressionism gave a new impulse to the sculptural arts. Contemporary artists such as Jorg Immendorf, Andora, and Markus Lupertz also enriched sculptures with outstanding works.