If you are fortunate enough to be anywhere near Leeds, you are lucky! An exhibition of Henry Moore’s notebooks and sketchbooks is opening this week:
The Henry Moore Institute and Leeds Arts University are marking 100 years since Yorkshire’s own Henry Moore started studying sculpture, the first step on his journey to becoming a world renowned artist.
The anniversary coincides with the unveiling of a set of the artist’s notebooks that will be shown in public for the first time at the Henry Moore Institute from Tuesday 13 October 2020.
Henry Moore (1898-1986) is widely recognised as one of the most important artists of the twentieth century, known for his semi-abstract monumental bronzes, which can be seen all over the world.
Following World War One the artist received an ex-serviceman’s grant which enabled him to enrol at Leeds School of Art (now Leeds Arts University). In September 1920, he started a year-long sculpture course at Leeds School of Art where a sculpture department was set up with Moore as the sole student. The art school appointed a new sculpture teacher Raymond Cotterill, primarily to teach Moore.
The results of this one-to-one tuition can be seen in his notebooks at the Henry Moore Institute, which have been uncovered for this landmark anniversary. Full of sketches of classical sculpture and architecture, along with handwritten notes from his lectures, these notebooks give a unique insight into his formative training and reveal details of the course which focused on the history of sculpture and gave him formal classical knowledge.
If you aren’t in the vicinity, you can see some of Henry Moore’s notebooks and sketchbooks on the website of the Henry Moore Foundation. Unfortunately the site doesn’t offer a full flip-through, but you can see the exteriors of various notebooks as well as assorted images on sheets that seem to have been removed from sketchbooks. But I’m glad I discovered this, as Moore is one of my favorite artists, and I don’t expect to be able to travel to the UK anytime soon! The exhibition ends on Dec. 18, 2020.
Read more: Henry Moore Foundation: Celebrating 100 Years Since Henry Moore Started Studying Sculpture in Leeds
I remember once on holiday with my parents in the 1960s, my mum dragging us all on a long walk across fields to visit a Henry Moore work and when we got there my dad being hugely unimpressed. I find sculpture is something I’ve grown to like as I’ve got older.
This is one of your best links ever. What a prolific and wonderful artist! Whereas we may know his sculptures, it’s a treat to see these examples of his sketching. The man could do anything.