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This small maquette represents a period in the late 1930s when Henry Moore was experimenting with surrealism. Although never officially a member of the surrealist group, Moore found an affinity with the movement’s aim to liberate the subconscious from rational thought. He consistently exhibited in a surrealist context in the late 1930s and sustained a relationship with many artists associated with the movement. The title of this piece blurs the boundaries between the body and the psyche, reflecting surrealism’s attempt to render the subconscious material. At this time, Moore also began to study oceanic sculpture and natural objects such as bones, pebbles, and branches, incorporating these forms into his figural pieces, as in Interior Figure. A decade later, Moore developed these concerns further in his large work Interior/Exterior Figure (1951).

Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2020

Moore produced an enormous number of small maquettes over the course of his career and they played an important part in his artistic process. A selection of them is displayed here. As he explained: “Sometimes I make ten or twenty maquettes for every one that I use in a large scale—the others may get rejected. If a maquette keeps its interest enough for me to want to realize it as a full-scale final work, then I might make a working model in an intermediate size, in which changes will be made before going to the real, full-sized sculpture.”

Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2016

Moore produced an enormous number of small maquettes over the course of his career, and they played an important part in his artistic process. A selection of them is displayed here. As he explained: "Sometimes I make ten or twenty maquettes for every one that I use in a large scale-the others may get rejected. If a maquette keeps its interest enough for me to want to realize it as a full-scale final work, then I might make a working model in an intermediate size, in which changes will be made before going to the real, full-sized sculpture."

Gallery label for Connections (Yale Center for British Art, 2011-05-26 - 2011-09-11)