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拍品专文
Originally conceived as an emblem for the television programme The Midas Touch (1990), directed by Frink's stepson Mark Csáky, Midas Head stands as a powerful meditation on history and culture, masculinity and vulnerability; themes that were central to her practice and deeply informed by her experiences of growing up near a military airfield, during the Second World War.
Lucie-Smith observes how Midas Head is ‘one of the few examples of a work where she seems to have been influenced by Henry Moore. As in Moore's Helmet Heads, Frink integrates the head and what covers it, the body and its carapace.’ The theme of the helmet first emerged in Moore’s work towards the end of the 1930s, at the same time as a powerful dark mood began to invade his work, driven by the artist’s despair regarding the increasingly disturbing political situation across Europe. Lucie-Smith goes on to discuss how with Frink’s Midas Touch, much like Moore’s Helmets, ‘the hollowness of the miser's ambition is symbolised by the hollow helmet which is also his head. The dark void within can be perceived through the empty eyesockets. It is, however, in keeping with its original function, a rather stylised, decorative work. It is clear that Frink wanted to create something which was immediately recognisable as soon as it appeared' (see E. Lucie-Smith, op. cit, p. 58).
As Moore looked back to Greek armour as inspiration, Frink’s discovery of the Riace bronzes in the 1980s that sparked a new body of work more directly referencing the warriors of Ancient Greece. These two full-size bronze statues, believed to have been drawn from the sea off the coast of Riace, Calabria, possess an air of mystery and mythology, echoing the myth of Atlantis. The ancient power and monumental presence of these bronzes profoundly influenced Frink, inspiring works such as Midas Head, which stand as some of the most recognisable and sought-after pieces in her oeuvre.
Lucie-Smith observes how Midas Head is ‘one of the few examples of a work where she seems to have been influenced by Henry Moore. As in Moore's Helmet Heads, Frink integrates the head and what covers it, the body and its carapace.’ The theme of the helmet first emerged in Moore’s work towards the end of the 1930s, at the same time as a powerful dark mood began to invade his work, driven by the artist’s despair regarding the increasingly disturbing political situation across Europe. Lucie-Smith goes on to discuss how with Frink’s Midas Touch, much like Moore’s Helmets, ‘the hollowness of the miser's ambition is symbolised by the hollow helmet which is also his head. The dark void within can be perceived through the empty eyesockets. It is, however, in keeping with its original function, a rather stylised, decorative work. It is clear that Frink wanted to create something which was immediately recognisable as soon as it appeared' (see E. Lucie-Smith, op. cit, p. 58).
As Moore looked back to Greek armour as inspiration, Frink’s discovery of the Riace bronzes in the 1980s that sparked a new body of work more directly referencing the warriors of Ancient Greece. These two full-size bronze statues, believed to have been drawn from the sea off the coast of Riace, Calabria, possess an air of mystery and mythology, echoing the myth of Atlantis. The ancient power and monumental presence of these bronzes profoundly influenced Frink, inspiring works such as Midas Head, which stand as some of the most recognisable and sought-after pieces in her oeuvre.