Valencia’s Henry Moore square

It simultaneously represents the curve of a female body and a rolling hill. The face is abstract, but it is possible to make out details such as the knuckles in the figurative hands.

Reclining Figure is one of seven enormous sculptures by Henry Moore (1898-1986) that have taken over the center of Valencia’s City Hall square. The same spot where firecrackers were going off just a few days ago for the annual Fallas celebration is now the silent setting for these giant bronze figures, which the British artist created between 1960 and 1982.

The sculptures synthesize some of the recurring themes in Moore’s work: a fascination for reclining women, his interest in the mother-child relationship, his exploration of both rural and urban settings, and the tension between abstract and natural.

The exhibition has been organized by Obra Social La Caixa as part of its Art on the Street program, in partnership with the city of Valencia and the Henry Moore Foundation. The latter's curator, Anita Feldman, visited the local IVAM modern art museum and personally confirmed the resemblance between a 1933 piece by Catalan sculptor Julio González on display there, and another sculpture made by Moore a year later.

Moore was dazzled by
the cave paintings in Altamira
during a visit to Spain in 1934

“Moore became familiar with González’s work in Paris and his files include a note about the Spanish sculptor’s attempt to draw the viewer in with his shapes,” said Feldman.

The British artist, the son of a coal miner, traveled to Spain in 1934, where he was dazzled by the cave paintings at Altamira, in Cantabria. While in Paris, he visited Picasso’s workshop as he was working on his famous Guernica mural.

Appalled by the destruction caused by the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), Moore created his first print, Spanish Prisoner, to sell to help Republican prisoners of war held at French concentration camps.

The Moore exhibition was inaugurated by Valencia Mayor Rita Barberá and will remain at City Hall square until May 6.