Henri LaurensBather (Fragment) 1931, ?later cast

Laurens’s early sculpture was Cubist in spirit, with hard edges and angles. Gradually his work acquired a softer, more rounded nature until by the 1930s his figures were large and luxuriant in form. This sculpture is the upper part of Reclining Woman, a full length reclining female nude of 1931. The Reclining Woman was sent to the bronze foundry for a cast to be made from the original clay and the cast was damaged. Laurens salvaged the upper half and transformed it into this self-sufficient fragment.