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拍品專文
Frink represented the solitary male figure throughout her career. Such was her preoccupation with the motif that there is only one female image in Frink's entire oeuvre, the Walking Madonna in the Cathedral Close at Salisbury. The male became a symbol of humanity and she explored within its form the complexity of the human condition, tackling not only the strength, courage, and beauty of mankind, but also its propensity for violence, brutality, and hatred. Frink was an active supporter of Amnesty International and her sculptures are a hauntingly implicit reminder of the contradictory powers at work throughout the world. It is Frink's portrayal of the male figure that sets her apart and makes her one of the most profound sculptors of the human condition this century has produced.
In the early 1980s she developed a new archetype centred on this theme, a seated male nude, based on drawings of a young man begun in 1981. She first attempted to sculpt this subject two years later, in a commission for Mr and Mrs Leo A. Daly, Washington. The figure that emerged was stockier than her earlier sinewy athletic figures, with a full-bodied sensuality. Both the positive and negative aspects of the male character are evident seen in the figure. The young man is only just coming to maturity. Handsome, strong and virile, he sits in a relaxed pose, yet his thick-set body and bullish head suggest malevolence. If he were to stand up and fully flex his muscles, there is no knowing what he might be capable of. He simultaneously evokes fascination, love and dread (S. Kent, 'A Bestiary for our time', B. Robertson, Elisabeth Frink Sculpture Catalogue Raisonné, Salisbury, 1984, p. 68). Seated Man II was conceived three years later, in 1986. He is also a commanding figure. Vigorous arches of cross-hatching delineate the solid volumes of a firm body. Even at rest he has great potential for muscular strength. Yet he is more tranquil and thoughtful than Seated Man. He gazes confidently out across the landscape, composed and bearing an air of calm contemplativeness.
By the 1980s, when Seated Man II was conceived, Frink was a highly successful establishment figure. In 1982, a new publishing firm proposed to produce a catalogue raisonné of all of her works to date and the Royal Academy planned a retrospective of her life's work. Despite these additional demands Frink continued to accept commissions to sculpt, as well as serve on advisory committees, meet with art students who had expressed an interest in her work, and pursue other public commitments. Despite her relatively high profile, in her maturity Frink preferred to work in relative isolation, even turning down an offer to become President of the Royal Academy. She never used models and drew inspiration from those closest to her. Her figures take on the facial characteristics of those she knew best and many bear a striking resemblance to herself. The model for both Seated Man and Seated Man II is likely to have been her third husband Alex Csárky. As with Frink's large heads of the 1980s, both sculptures seem to bear a distinct resemblance to his physiognomy.
Frink initially believed that the seated man pose would eventually develop into a large sequence, like her series of Running Men (1979-86). However she only completed these two sculptures and the pensiveness of Seated Man II was soon displaced by the unease and menace of the Riace Warriors (1986-89).
In the early 1980s she developed a new archetype centred on this theme, a seated male nude, based on drawings of a young man begun in 1981. She first attempted to sculpt this subject two years later, in a commission for Mr and Mrs Leo A. Daly, Washington. The figure that emerged was stockier than her earlier sinewy athletic figures, with a full-bodied sensuality. Both the positive and negative aspects of the male character are evident seen in the figure. The young man is only just coming to maturity. Handsome, strong and virile, he sits in a relaxed pose, yet his thick-set body and bullish head suggest malevolence. If he were to stand up and fully flex his muscles, there is no knowing what he might be capable of. He simultaneously evokes fascination, love and dread (S. Kent, 'A Bestiary for our time', B. Robertson, Elisabeth Frink Sculpture Catalogue Raisonné, Salisbury, 1984, p. 68). Seated Man II was conceived three years later, in 1986. He is also a commanding figure. Vigorous arches of cross-hatching delineate the solid volumes of a firm body. Even at rest he has great potential for muscular strength. Yet he is more tranquil and thoughtful than Seated Man. He gazes confidently out across the landscape, composed and bearing an air of calm contemplativeness.
By the 1980s, when Seated Man II was conceived, Frink was a highly successful establishment figure. In 1982, a new publishing firm proposed to produce a catalogue raisonné of all of her works to date and the Royal Academy planned a retrospective of her life's work. Despite these additional demands Frink continued to accept commissions to sculpt, as well as serve on advisory committees, meet with art students who had expressed an interest in her work, and pursue other public commitments. Despite her relatively high profile, in her maturity Frink preferred to work in relative isolation, even turning down an offer to become President of the Royal Academy. She never used models and drew inspiration from those closest to her. Her figures take on the facial characteristics of those she knew best and many bear a striking resemblance to herself. The model for both Seated Man and Seated Man II is likely to have been her third husband Alex Csárky. As with Frink's large heads of the 1980s, both sculptures seem to bear a distinct resemblance to his physiognomy.
Frink initially believed that the seated man pose would eventually develop into a large sequence, like her series of Running Men (1979-86). However she only completed these two sculptures and the pensiveness of Seated Man II was soon displaced by the unease and menace of the Riace Warriors (1986-89).