Reclining Soldier 1929 - 1930

Paul Kiærskou made this sculpture of a soldier reclining, although there is no date on the work itself, he died only a few years after he was born, so you can assume that it was made sometime in the early 20th Century. There’s something about the way that the blocky, almost Cubist forms of this sculpture contrast with the softer edges of the soldier’s body that I find really compelling. You get the sense of Kiærskou’s process, the marks he made as he worked away at the stone, defining the planes of the soldier’s body, his hands, his feet. Up close, you can see the rough texture of the stone, the traces of the artist’s tools. The face is almost featureless, the arms and hands are carved holding something, maybe a loaf of bread? All these details, or lack of them, create a sense of solemnity and introspection. In some ways it reminds me of the work of Henry Moore, the way he used simplified forms to convey complex emotions. Both artists remind us that art is a process, a conversation, an ongoing exploration of form and feeling.