Henri LaurensHead of a Young Girl 1920

Head of Young Woman bears the hallmarks both of Laurens's Cubist works made between 1915 and 1919 and his more classical sculptures of the 1920s and 30s (see Tate T00361 and T01111). The angular structure of the woman's face contrasts with the soft waves of her hair and the gentle curve of her left shoulder. Her right eye is delineated by a simple incised mark, whereas her left eye, although equally schematic, protrudes from the flat plane of the cheek. This contrast characterises the rich vocabulary of carving techniques that Laurens used in this work, many of which he had learnt during the years he spent working in the studio of a sculptor of building ornaments in Paris between 1899 and 1906… (read more)