AT 1812, INSPIRATION OFTEN BEGINS FAR BEYOND THE SNEAKER. IT BEGINS IN SCULPTURE, ARCHITECTURE AND ART THAT EXPLORES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FORM, MATERIAL AND SPACE. THESE INFLUENCES SHAPE HOW WE THINK ABOUT PROPORTION, STRUCTURE AND THE QUIET PRESENCE OF OBJECTS.
THIS SERIES EXPLORES ARTISTS WHOSE WORK CONTINUES TO INFLUENCE THE CREATIVE THINKING OF THE FOUNDER AND THE WIDER WORLD AROUND 1812. THEIR IMPORTANCE LIES NOT IN VISUAL REFERENCE BUT IN PHILOSOPHY. THE WAY THEY APPROACHED MATERIAL, FORM AND MEANING CONTINUES TO INFORM THE WAY DESIGN CAN FEEL BOTH SCULPTURAL AND ENDURING.
HENRY MOORE WAS BORN IN 1898 IN CASTLEFORD, YORKSHIRE. THE SON OF A COAL MINER, MOORE GREW UP SURROUNDED BY THE INDUSTRIAL LANDSCAPE OF NORTHERN ENGLAND, A SETTING THAT WOULD QUIETLY INFLUENCE HIS LATER FASCINATION WITH MASS, STRUCTURE AND EARTH-LIKE FORMS. AFTER SERVING IN THE FIRST WORLD WAR, HE STUDIED AT THE LEEDS SCHOOL OF ART BEFORE CONTINUING AT THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART. DURING THE EARLY PART OF HIS CAREER HE BEGAN TO EXPLORE SCULPTURE THAT MOVED AWAY FROM TRADITIONAL REPRESENTATION, PURSUING ABSTRACTED HUMAN FORMS THAT FELT ORGANIC, MONUMENTAL AND DEEPLY CONNECTED TO THE LANDSCAPE.
MOORE BECAME INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNISED FOR HIS RECLINING FIGURES, SCULPTURES THAT REINTERPRET THE HUMAN BODY THROUGH SIMPLIFIED SHAPES AND FLOWING CONTOURS. THESE WORKS ARE NOT LITERAL REPRESENTATIONS. THEY EXPLORE THE ESSENCE OF THE BODY THROUGH RHYTHM, BALANCE AND MASS. OPEN SPACES CARVED THROUGH THE SCULPTURE ALLOW LIGHT TO PASS THROUGH THE FORM. SOLID BRONZE APPEARS ALMOST FLUID, SHIFTING DEPENDING ON THE ANGLE OF VIEW. MOORE BELIEVED THAT SCULPTURE SHOULD EXIST IN DIALOGUE WITH ITS SURROUNDINGS. THE LANDSCAPE, THE SKY AND THE MOVEMENT OF LIGHT BECOME PART OF THE WORK ITSELF.
BY THE MID TWENTIETH CENTURY MOORE HAD BECOME ONE OF BRITAIN'S MOST CELEBRATED SCULPTORS. HIS WORK IS REPRESENTED IN MAJOR INSTITUTIONS INCLUDING THE TATE AND THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART. MORE IMPORTANTLY, HIS INFLUENCE EXTENDS BEYOND SCULPTURE. ARCHITECTS, DESIGNERS AND ARTISTS CONTINUE TO STUDY HIS ABILITY TO TRANSFORM SIMPLE ORGANIC FORMS INTO POWERFUL SCULPTURAL LANGUAGE.
FOR THE FOUNDER OF 1812, MOORE'S WORK OFFERS AN ENDURING LESSON IN SCULPTURAL THINKING. THE BALANCE BETWEEN MASS AND VOID. THE WAY LIGHT INTERACTS WITH SHAPE. THE DISCIPLINE REQUIRED TO REDUCE FORM TO ITS ESSENTIAL STRUCTURE. THESE PRINCIPLES RESONATE STRONGLY WITHIN THE WORLD OF DESIGN AND CRAFTSMANSHIP. OBJECTS CAN POSSESS QUIET STRENGTH WHEN PROPORTION, MATERIAL AND SILHOUETTE ARE CONSIDERED WITH CARE.
MOORE'S SCULPTURES REMIND US THAT POWERFUL DESIGN RARELY REQUIRES COMPLEXITY. IT EMERGES FROM CLARITY OF FORM AND AN UNDERSTANDING OF HOW OBJECTS EXIST WITHIN SPACE.
