Karl Albiker

Boy with Hat, 1919

About the object

The slim, towering figure »Boy with Hat« by the sculptor Karl Albiker seems to be caught in a momentary movement. The boy's sense of balance seems precarious, inasmuch as any movement would trigger a train of motion in the whole body. Albiker's quest to capture form in motion and thus overcome the heaviness of the sculptural material comes impressively to the fore in this figure.
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Albiker's quest to capture form in motion and thus overcome the heaviness of the sculptural material comes impressively to the fore in his sculpture »Boy with Hat«. The narrow, towering juvenile life study seems to be caught in a momentary movement, pausing briefly, rapt in a present thought. The posture of the figure itself expresses a decisive sense of momentum: the figure's sense of balance seems precarious, inasmuch any movement would trigger a train of motion in the whole body. The feeling expressed in the posture also lends a sense of momentariness to the sculpture: the reticence expressed in the way the boy is holding his arms is mitigated by the expansive spread of the legs, thereby revealing itself more as a momentary effect rather than as an aspect of character. Albiker never pursued abstraction, firmly remaining on the figurative path throughout his lifelong search for the expressive possibilities of the human figure. Be that as it may, his notes reveal that he was aware of abstract tendencies and ideas in art and that they undoubtedly formed a basis for his work.

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References

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Michael Haas; Christine Litz; Christiane Grathwohl-Scheffel: Freundschaftsspiel. Sammlung Haas : Museum für Neue Kunst. Freiburg im Breisgau 2013.

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