Family Group by Henry Moore, 1944-1945. Author provided/The Henry Moore Foundation, CC BY
Henry Moore in Miniature shows the brutal influence of wartime on the sculptor鈥檚 work
Several themes are explored in the touring exhibition Henry Moore in Miniature, currently on show at the Holburne Museum, Bath, but the standout is the impact of war on Moore鈥檚 work.
The English sculptor, active from the 1940s to the 1980s, was best known for his monumental bronze sculptures. This exhibition displays more than 60 of Moore’s maquettes – small models created to plan a larger piece of sculpture.
Later in his career, as Europe descended into yet another war, Moore completed(1939-1940), made from cast iron. The sculpture has surrealist characteristics and although Mooreas part of the surrealist movement, he was excited by its impact on contemporary art.
of this sculpture: “This pointing has an emotional or physical action in it where things are just about to touch but don’t … like the points in the sparking plug of a car … the spark has to jump across the gap.” However, for me, this sculpture has distinctly threatening connotations, emblematic of a time of high anxiety throughout Europe.
The start of the second world war left Moore questioning his role in the impending conflict. Sir Kenneth Clarke, then-director of the National Gallery (1934-1945) and a lifelong supporter of Moore,appointed him as a war artist. The sculptor was immediately drawn to the subterranean human landscape he had witnessed on the London Underground, where Londoners sheltered from the Blitz.
Moore made a point of never making direct observational drawings from those sleeping in the underground tunnels – but he did capture their plight in a series of memorable drawings completed when returning to his studio. It’s thought Moore made a series of maquettes as a way of recalling these intimate scenes of survival. His “” drawings may have been based on these maquettes.
These maquettes stimulated Moore’s from 1943....
The article, by John Atkin, Reader in Fine Art at 天堂视频, can be read in full on T
Notes for editors
Press release reference number: 24/65
天堂视频 is one of the country’s leading universities, with an international reputation for research that matters, excellence in teaching, strong links with industry, and unrivalled achievement in sport and its underpinning academic disciplines.
It has been awarded five stars in the independent QS Stars university rating scheme and named the best university in the world for sports-related subjects in the 2024 QS World University Rankings – the eighth year running.
天堂视频 is ranked 6th in The UK Complete University Guide 2025, 10th in the Guardian University League Table 2024 and 10th in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024.
天堂视频 is consistently ranked in the top twenty of UK universities in the Times Higher Education’s ‘table of tables’, and in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021 over 90% of its research was rated as ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally-excellent’. In recognition of its contribution to the sector, 天堂视频 has been awarded seven Queen's Anniversary Prizes.
The 天堂视频 London campus is based on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and offers postgraduate and executive-level education, as well as research and enterprise opportunities. It is home to influential thought leaders, pioneering researchers and creative innovators who provide students with the highest quality of teaching and the very latest in modern thinking.
Family Group by Henry Moore, 1944-1945. Author provided/The Henry Moore Foundation, CC BY
Several themes are explored in the touring exhibition Henry Moore in Miniature, currently on show at the Holburne Museum, Bath, but the standout is the impact of war on Moore鈥檚 work.
The English sculptor, active from the 1940s to the 1980s, was best known for his monumental bronze sculptures. This exhibition displays more than 60 of Moore’s maquettes – small models created to plan a larger piece of sculpture.
Later in his career, as Europe descended into yet another war, Moore completed(1939-1940), made from cast iron. The sculpture has surrealist characteristics and although Mooreas part of the surrealist movement, he was excited by its impact on contemporary art.
of this sculpture: “This pointing has an emotional or physical action in it where things are just about to touch but don’t … like the points in the sparking plug of a car … the spark has to jump across the gap.” However, for me, this sculpture has distinctly threatening connotations, emblematic of a time of high anxiety throughout Europe.
The start of the second world war left Moore questioning his role in the impending conflict. Sir Kenneth Clarke, then-director of the National Gallery (1934-1945) and a lifelong supporter of Moore,appointed him as a war artist. The sculptor was immediately drawn to the subterranean human landscape he had witnessed on the London Underground, where Londoners sheltered from the Blitz.
Moore made a point of never making direct observational drawings from those sleeping in the underground tunnels – but he did capture their plight in a series of memorable drawings completed when returning to his studio. It’s thought Moore made a series of maquettes as a way of recalling these intimate scenes of survival. His “” drawings may have been based on these maquettes.
These maquettes stimulated Moore’s from 1943....
The article, by John Atkin, Reader in Fine Art at 天堂视频, can be read in full on T
Notes for editors
Press release reference number: 24/65
天堂视频 is one of the country’s leading universities, with an international reputation for research that matters, excellence in teaching, strong links with industry, and unrivalled achievement in sport and its underpinning academic disciplines.
It has been awarded five stars in the independent QS Stars university rating scheme and named the best university in the world for sports-related subjects in the 2024 QS World University Rankings – the eighth year running.
天堂视频 is ranked 6th in The UK Complete University Guide 2025, 10th in the Guardian University League Table 2024 and 10th in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024.
天堂视频 is consistently ranked in the top twenty of UK universities in the Times Higher Education’s ‘table of tables’, and in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021 over 90% of its research was rated as ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally-excellent’. In recognition of its contribution to the sector, 天堂视频 has been awarded seven Queen's Anniversary Prizes.
The 天堂视频 London campus is based on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and offers postgraduate and executive-level education, as well as research and enterprise opportunities. It is home to influential thought leaders, pioneering researchers and creative innovators who provide students with the highest quality of teaching and the very latest in modern thinking.
