Inclined Head of Kneeling Woman
1911
Wilhelm Lehmbruck (German, 1881-1919)
On View

At a moment when many artists were producing brash abstractions, Lehmbruck—like his friend Maillol—remained devoted to the human form. Elongated, purified, even gently abstracted, Lehmbruck’s figures are nevertheless whole and movingly human. With an inward gaze and a graceful neck, this bust epitomizes the artist’s mature style. It was cast from the upper portion of a full-length sculpture, The Kneeling Woman, today widely regarded as Lehmbruck’s most important contribution to the history of art. His decision to cast the bust separately may have been influenced by Rodin’s similar practice, but the resulting object—in which spiritual detachment and a delicate sensuality are carefully balanced—more clearly recalls busts of the Virgin Mary modeled in terracotta in the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance.

Details

  • Artist Name: Wilhelm Lehmbruck (German, 1881-1919)
  • Title: Inclined Head of Kneeling Woman
  • Date: 1911
  • Medium: Plaster
  • Dimensions: 18-1/2 x 17-1/2 x 11-1/2 in. (47 x 44.5 x 29.2 cm)
  • Credit Line: Norton Simon Art Foundation
  • Accession Number: M.1967.15.S
  • Copyright: © Norton Simon Art Foundation

Object Information

Maria Stadelmayer-Wolff, Munich.
[R.N. Ketterer, Campione bei Lugano, sold 1967 to];
Norton Simon Art Foundation.

The Blue Four and Their Contemporaries

  • Norton Simon Museum, 1991-06-20 to 1992-05-24

Modern Sculpture from the Norton Simon, Inc. Museum of Art and the Norton Simon Foundation

  • Pasadena Art Museum, 1972-08-01 to 1972-10-26

Redesigned Degas Galleries

  • Norton Simon Museum, 1995-05-04 to 1997-06-01
  • Schubert, Dietrich, Die Kunst Lehmbrucks, no. 130 pp. 82, 166
  • R.N. Ketterer, Modern Kunst IV, 1967, no. 93 p. 116
  • Campbell, Sara, Collector Without Walls: Norton Simon and His Hunt for the Best, 2010, cat. 373 p. 290
  • Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, Wilhelm Lehmbruck, 2018, pp. 86-87, 110-111

Additional Artwork by Artist

Head of a Woman Wilhelm Lehmbruck 1913-14
Standing Woman Wilhelm Lehmbruck 1910

Image reproduction permission may be granted for scholarly or arts related commercial use. All image requests, regardless of their intended purpose, should be submitted via the reproduction request form.

Images may be protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights. Additional permission may be required.

Approved requests for the reproduction of an image will receive a contract detailing all fees and conditions of use of the image. Upon receipt of both the signed contract and full payment, the Office of Rights and Reproductions will provide the image. A complimentary copy of the published material must be provided to the Norton Simon Museum.

Reproduction Request Form