Figure

<p>Henry Moore’s seven-decade artistic career began with his early interest in non-Western art. Initially inspired by the African, Oceanic, and especially Pre-Columbian art that he saw at the British Museum in London, Moore, like <a href="https://www.artic.edu/artists/33735">Constantin Brâncusi</a>, became a passionate proponent of direct carving, a technique that allowed the inherent qualities of materials to dictate a sculpture’s final form. In the 1930s, Moore merged his interest in non-Western art with aspects of abstraction and Surrealism, which he encountered during his regular trips to Paris. Works like <em>Figure</em> reveal Moore’s engagement with the organic, biomorphic forms used by contemporary Surrealist artists such as <a href="https://www.artic.edu/artists/40418">Jean Arp</a>, <a href="https://www.artic.edu/artists/34643">Alberto Giacometti</a>, and <a href="https://www.artic.edu/artists/32048">Joan Miró</a>.</p>