New aesthetic
Speed and movement are the main themes of the Italian futurists. They regard the classical marble or bronze sculpture as entirely inappropriate for expressing the modern world and its dynamism. Thus, the aesthetics of traditional art and culture need to be replaced by the ‘new beauty’ of contemporary dynamism and by subjects such as the car, the train, the motorcycle, but also the human figure, on the move.
Speed and movement
Umberto Boccioni is both a painter and a sculptor. With the sculptures that he makes during his brief lifetime, he proves himself a true futurist. In this powerful sculpture, he attempts to capture the speed and movement of a human figure in a single sculpture.
Structure of the action
He is interested not only in the depiction of the many stages and moments of a hurrying figure, but also above all in the idea of the movement of a figure in space. ‘Not a unique form, but a unique sculptural rhythm, not the structure of the body, but the structure of the body’s action.’
Extra: Moving Pictures
Malou Kwint made this short film, inspired by Boccioni's work. Moving Pictures is a creative collaborative project of ArtEZ and the Kröller-Müller Museum.
