MINNE, George

This young boy defiantly exposes his nude, emaciated body while simultaneously crossing his arms protectively, his hidden face betraying anguish and despair. The rendering of his tensed muscles and taut flesh, precariously resting on his thin legs, makes this a stunning achievement in marble carving. The symmetrical composition gives this small-scale statue a monumental effect.

Minne modelled his sculptures in clay and had them cast in plaster. After this, they were worked out in bronze, stone or wood, mostly on order from abroad. He received his most important commission from the German collector Karl Ernst Osthaus, who called on Henry Van de Velde for the construction and furnishing of the Osthaus Museum in Hagen. In addition to various other sculptures, Minne produced his principal work for the entrance hall of the Osthaus Museum: the Fountain of Kneeling Youths, in which he repeated the figure of the kneeling boy around a circular basin. He showed designs for this fountain from 1899 in a succession of exhibitions. The only surviving model in plaster is in the Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Ghent; the final version in marble (1905) is in the Folkwang Museum, Essen. The Osthaus Museum (now Folkwang Museum) in Hagen has a replica of the fountain in the main hall. Later, bronze versions were executed and set up in public places.

With the sculpture group, Minne concluded his long quest recorded in various preparatory drawings and sketchbooks. He tried out several postures and combinations in which he grouped elegant figures, both standing and kneeling, around a pelvis and placed them in imaginary shapes, setting up architectural decors.

The picture shows the plaster model in the Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Ghent.

Minne modelled his sculptures in clay and had them cast in plaster. After this, they were worked out in bronze, stone or wood, mostly on order from abroad. He received his most important commission from the German collector Karl Ernst Osthaus, who called on Henry Van de Velde for the construction and furnishing of the Osthaus Museum in Hagen. In addition to various other sculptures, Minne produced his principal work for the entrance hall of the Osthaus Museum: the Fountain of Kneeling Youths, in which he repeated the figure of the kneeling boy around a circular basin. He showed designs for this fountain from 1899 in a succession of exhibitions. The only surviving model in plaster is in the Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Ghent; the final version in marble (1905) is in the Folkwang Museum, Essen. The Osthaus Museum (now Folkwang Museum) in Hagen has a replica of the fountain in the main hall. Later, bronze versions were executed and set up in public places.

The picture shows the original marble version in the Folkwang Museum, Essen.

Minne modelled his sculptures in clay and had them cast in plaster. After this, they were worked out in bronze, stone or wood, mostly on order from abroad. He received his most important commission from the German collector Karl Ernst Osthaus, who called on Henry Van de Velde for the construction and furnishing of the Osthaus Museum in Hagen. In addition to various other sculptures, Minne produced his principal work for the entrance hall of the Osthaus Museum: the Fountain of Kneeling Youths, in which he repeated the figure of the kneeling boy around a circular basin. He showed designs for this fountain from 1899 in a succession of exhibitions. The only surviving model in plaster is in the Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Ghent; the final version in marble (1905) is in the Folkwang Museum, Essen. The Osthaus Museum (now Folkwang Museum) in Hagen has a replica of the fountain in the main hall. Later, bronze versions were executed and set up in public places.

The picture shows the fountain exhibited in the Osthaus-Museum at Hagen.

In his early years, Minne produced both expressively sculpted images and more contemplative figures. Around 1897, the typical figures of kneeling, mourning, or injured figures from his earlier oeuvre underwent a process of purification and abstraction, as seen in the more stylized and refined figure of the kneeling youth, Minne’s best-known sculpture. In the famous Fountain of the Kneeling Youths, he arranged five identical copies around a water basin with a controlled rhythm of straight or curved lines and surfaces.

In his early years, Minne produced both expressively sculpted images and more contemplative figures. Around 1897, the typical figures of kneeling, mourning, or injured figures from his earlier oeuvre underwent a process of purification and abstraction, as seen in the more stylized and refined figure of the kneeling youth, Minne’s best-known sculpture. In the famous Fountain of the Kneeling Youths, he arranged five identical copies around a water basin with a controlled rhythm of straight or curved lines and surfaces.

The photo shows a bronze version in Ghent. The figures date c. 1905, the water basin c. 1927-30.

In his early years, Minne produced both expressively sculpted images and more contemplative figures. Around 1897, the typical figures of kneeling, mourning, or injured figures from his earlier oeuvre underwent a process of purification and abstraction, as seen in the more stylized and refined figure of the kneeling youth, Minne’s best-known sculpture. In the famous Fountain of the Kneeling Youths, he arranged five identical copies around a water basin with a controlled rhythm of straight or curved lines and surfaces.

The photo shows a bronze version in Ghent. The figures date c. 1905, the water basin c. 1927-30.