Musée Imaginaire 1963

Reg Butler made this "Musée Imaginaire", we don't know when, from bronze. It's a wall-mounted shelf unit displaying an array of bronze figures, mostly figurative, each possessing a unique shape and texture. Looking at these shelves, each little sculpture becomes a kind of drawing in space. The surfaces appear roughly worked, retaining marks of the artist’s process. The metal has a tactile quality, almost earthy, like unrefined clay. Notice the variations in tone, from dark browns to lighter, almost golden highlights, as if the figures are catching light in different ways. The forms range from simple, almost primal shapes to more complex, stylized figures. Take the third shelf down, fourth from the left, the small figure of a child. How does that feel, sat between more complex forms? The arrangement feels like a conversation, or a collection of thoughts. Artists like Giacometti come to mind, with his elongated figures and emphasis on raw, expressive surfaces. Butler invites us into a world where the process of making is as important as the final form, a world of endless possibilities.