Seated Woman, 1914 (cast of 1964)

Seated Woman is one of Gaudier’s last and most accomplished pieces. The simplification of the figure’s features results from the artist’s interest in African masks, which he knew well from visits to the British Museum and other collections, including that of Jacob Epstein.

The increasing emphasis on carving in stone meant that Gaudier had to struggle with the problem of forming the human body into a compact pose, confined by the shape of the stone. The positioning of the arm over the head, which creates a composition of repeated triangular parts that echo each other and at times join up as diamonds, resolves this technical problem.

This is one of two bronze casts in the house. They were made from Gaudier’s marble carving in the mid-1960s, on Ede’s commission. He later donated the original to the Musée d’Art Moderne in Paris.