Henry Moore OM, CH

The bronze sculpture Three Motives Against Wall No.2 comprises three individual amorphous forms positioned in a row on a stage-like platform set against an upright rectangular wall. This wall is imprinted with an arrangement of square and rectangular depressions and is joined to the horizontal platform to create a right-angled unit. The assembled bronze is mounted onto a copper-clad wooden base. The three forms, or motives, sit directly on the bronze base, to which they are attached with a bolt screwed from the underside. This particular subject and composition was first devised by Moore in 1958 when he created Three Motives Against a Wall No.1 (Tate T03763), although there are significant differences between this earlier sculpture and the present work.

The motive on the left-hand side is a single entity but comprises two globular, curvaceous forms that appear to be balanced one on top of the other (fig.1). Overall the motive is roughly oval-shaped, although from the front it appears as though two u-shaped forms have been slotted together leaving a small recess in the centre. The top edge of the motive dips slightly in the middle creating a concave curve, while the front is rounded and projects forward. By contrast, the middle motive consists of a thin, tubular shaft that rises vertically upwards from the base and is punctuated by two short protrusions, or stumps, on alternate sides (fig.2). The top of the shaft curves forwards at a right angle and culminates in a long, bulbous protrusion that makes the motive seem top heavy.