Ernst Barlach: Wooden sculpture 'Dreaming Woman' (1912), reduction in bronze

Barlach's massive wooden sculpture 'Dreaming Woman' from 1912 is a work of art of enormous charisma. The female figure lies there, oblivious to the world, with her knees slightly drawn up, her eyes closed, her head leaning back in a relaxed manner with soft facial features, her hands resting in her lap - a symbol of the greatest serenity. Barlach devoted himself to dreams and dreamers several times during this period; indeed, on the eve of the First World War, it was an almost typical motif in many areas of art. Unlike his 'Dreamer' from the same year, however, there is not a trace of desperate foreboding or fearful uncertainty in the 'Dreaming Woman': the (day)dreaming figure is completely at peace with herself, seemingly unassailable by all the dangers of the world. Like all Barlach sculptures, the 'Dreaming Woman' lives from the masterfully staged contrast of strictly reduced form and strong emotional experience. The form of his sculptures, Barlach once commented laconically, 'corresponds to the soft waves of the Mecklenburg landscape' - the great art of the sculptor, however, lies in creating complex landscapes of the soul before the eye of the beholder in this almost primordially restrained formal language. Sculpture in fine bronze, cast and patinated by hand using the lost wax technique. Moulded directly from the original and reduced in size (reduction). Limited edition of 980 copies, individually numbered and with the signature 'E. Barlach' and the foundry mark. ars mundi exclusive edition, published in collaboration with the Ernst Barlach Gesellschaft. With numbered certificate of authenticity and limitation. Size 31 x 14.5 x 11.5 cm (W/H/D), weight approx. 3 kg.