MINNE, George
Belgian sculptor. He is known for his idealized depictions of man’s inner spiritual conflicts, including the “Kneeling Youth” sculpture series. A contemporary of Gustav Klimt and Egon Schiele, Minne’s work shows many similarities in both form and subject matter to the Viennese Secessionists.
In his late 1800s work, George Minne captured a sense of spiritual unease strikingly contemporary in its outlook. The attenuated proportions, softly modelled flesh, and unstable posture of his simple, mystical figures, express anxiety and resignation. At the Ghent Academy, Minne studied architecture before taking courses in sculpture and painting. Around 1887, when Minne began exhibiting, Symbolist writers like Maurice Maeterlinck recognized the power of his grieving, injured figures; and invited him to illustrate their literary works, which also de-emphasized naturalism in favour of exploring the human spiritual life and inner conflict.
Auguste Rodin’s work was a point of departure for Minne. But about 1891, after Rodin had patronizingly dismissed him with words of encouragement, Minne returned to Belgium. He worked for his architect father, married, and soon went bankrupt. Then, in 1896, having spent a year at the academy in Brussels, his most productive time began. Mostly small in scale, Minne’swork contains only a few motifs that he explored repeatedly. Best known is Kneeling Youth, which displays influence from Gothic sculpture and the Pre-Raphaelites. His major success throughout Europe began around 1900 but, ironically, by that time, he had already created his most important sculptures. Minne strongly influenced artists in Belgium, France, and Germany.