In this bust of his mother, Cecilia Forlani Boccioni, the artist employs Cubist distortions and fragmentation to undermine conventional concepts of beauty. The title refers to Boccioni’s rejection of traditional artistic values, a view he expanded on in his 1914 book Pittura, scultura futuriste, "We must smash, demolish, and destroy our traditional harmony, which makes us fall into a gracefulness created by timid and sentimental cubs." Art historians have speculated that Pablo Picasso’s 1909 bronze Head of a Woman influenced Boccioni since the two works have striking stylistic similarities.
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Artwork Details
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Title:Antigraceful
Artist:Umberto Boccioni (Italian, Reggio 1882–1916 Sorte)
Date:1913, cast 1950
Medium:Bronze
Dimensions:23 × 21 × 16 1/2 in. (58.4 × 53.3 × 41.9 cm) Weight: 105 lb. (47.6 kg)
Classification:Sculpture
Credit Line:Bequest of Lydia Winston Malbin, 1989
Object Number:1990.38.1
Benedetta Cappa Marinetti, Rome (until 1956; sold in September 1956 to Winston); Lydia and Harry Lewis Winston, Birmingham, Mich. (1956–his d. 1966); Lydia Winston Malbin, Detroit and New York (1966–d. 1989; her bequest to MMA)
Paris. Musée National d'Art Moderne. "Exposition d'art moderne italien," May–June 1950, no. 91 (as "Tête de sa mère," 1902, lent by a private collection).
London. Tate Gallery. "Modern Italian Art: An Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture held under the auspices of the Amici di Brera and the Italian Institute," June–July 1950, no. 114 (as "Head of a Mother", 1902).
Kunsthaus Zürich. "Futurismo & Pittura Metafisica," November 10–December 1950, extended to January 7, 1951, no. 32 (as "Kopf der Mutter," 1912, lent by a private collection).
Bienal Internacional de São Paulo. "IIa Bienal: Futuristas e artistas italianos de hoje," December 8, 1953–February 8, 1954, no. 14 (as "Desgracioso," 1912, lent by Benedetta Marinetti, Rome).
Detroit Institute of Arts. "Collecting Modern Art: Paintings, Sculpture and Drawings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lewis Winston," September 27–November 3, 1957, no. 20 (as "La Madre [Antigrazioso]").
Richmond. Virginia Museum of Art. "Collecting Modern Art: Paintings, Sculpture and Drawings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lewis Winston," December 13, 1957–January 5, 1958, no. 20.
San Francisco Museum of Art. "Collecting Modern Art: Paintings, Sculpture and Drawings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lewis Winston," January 23–March 13, 1958, no. 20.
Milwaukee Art Institute. "Collecting Modern Art: Paintings, Sculpture and Drawings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lewis Winston," April 11–May 12, 1958, no. 20.
Minneapolis. Walker Art Center. "Collecting Modern Art: Paintings, Sculpture and Drawings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lewis Winston," June 15–August 3, 1958, no. 20.
Milan. Palazzo Reale. "Arte Italiana del XX Secolo da Collezioni Americane," April 30–June 26, 1960, no. 41 (as "La Madre [Antigrazioso]," lent by Sig. e Sig.ra Harry Lewis Winston, Birmingham, Michigan).
Rome. Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna. "Arte Italiana del XX Secolo da Collezioni Americane," July 16–September 18, 1960, no. 41.
Paris. Musée National d'Art Moderne. "Les sources du XXe siècle: Les arts en Europe de 1884 à 1914," November 4, 1960–January 23, 1961, no. 36 (as "Portrait Antigracieux," lent by Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lewis Winston, Birmingham, Michigan).
Museum of Modern Art, New York. "Futurism," May 31–September 5, 1961, no. 48 (as "Anti-Graceful [The Artist's Mother] [Antigrazioso (La Madre)]," lent by Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lewis Winston, Birmingham, Michigan).
Detroit Institute of Arts. "Futurism," October 18–December 19, 1961, no. 48.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art. "Futurism," January 14–February 19, 1962, no. 48.
Detroit Institute of Arts. "Selections from the Lydia and Harry Lewis Winston Collection (Dr. and Mrs. Barnett Malbin)," July 18, 1972–April 20, 1973, unnum. checklist.
New York. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. "Futurism: A Modern Focus. The Lydia and Harry Lewis Winston Collection. Dr. and Mrs. Barnett Malbin," November 16, 1973–February 3, 1974, no. 28.
Kunsthalle Düsseldorf. "Futurismus 1909–1917: Wir setzen den Betrachter mitten ins Bild," March 15–April 28, 1974, no. 8 (as "Antigraziös", 1912, lent by Mrs. Barnett Malbin [The Lydia and Harry Lewis Winston Collection], Birmingham, Mich.).
New York. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. "Masters of Modern Sculpture," November 19, 1974–February 27, 1975, no catalogue (checklist no. 28, as "Anti-Graceful; the Mother; Portrait of the Artist's Mothe,r" 1912, lent by The Lydia and Harry Lewis Winston Collection [Dr. and Mrs. Barnett Malbin, New York]).
Washington, D.C. National Gallery of Art. "Aspects of Twentieth-Century Art," June 1–July 30, 1978, no. 50 (as "Anti-Graceful; The Mother; Portrait of the Artist's Mother," 1912, lent by The Lydia and Harry Lewis Winston Collection [Dr. and Mrs. Barnett Malbin]).
Philadelphia Museum of Art. "Futurism and the International Avant-Garde," October 26, 1980–January 4, 1981, no. 44 (as "Anti-Graceful; The Mother [Portrait of the Artist's Mother]," 1912 [cast 1950–51], lent by The Lydia and Harry Lewis Winston Collection [Dr. and Mrs. Barnett Malbin]).
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Boccioni: A Retrospective," September 15, 1988–January 8, 1989, no. 86 (lent by Lydia Winston Malbin, New York).
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Boccioni: The Lydia Winston Malbin Bequest," June 15, 1990–January 15, 1991, no catalogue.
Venice. Palazzo Grassi. "Biennale, 46 Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte. Identity and Alterity: Figures of the Body 1895–1995," June 11–October 15, 1995, no. III.1.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Some Women," December 6, 1996–April 13, 1997, no catalogue.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Boccioni and Women," June 19–October 18, 1998, no catalogue.
Rome. Galleria Comunale d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea. "On Dynamism: Works by Umberto Boccioni from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York and the Civiche Raccolte d'Arte del Castello Sforzesco, Milano," December 14, 1999–March 20, 2000, no. 6.
Sprengel Museum Hannover. "Der Lärm der Strasse: Italienischer Futurismus, 1909–1918," March 11–June 24, 2001, no. 111.
Rome. Palazzo delle Esposizioni. "Futurismo 1909–1944: Arte, architettura, spettacolo, grafica, letteratura....," July 7–October 22, extended to November 12, 2001, unnumbered cat. (p. 246; dated 1912).
Copenhagen. Statens Museum for Kunst. "The Avant-Garde in Danish and European Art, 1909–19," September 7, 2002–January 19, 2003, no. 55 (dated 1912–13).
Rome. Scuderie del Quirinale. "Futurismo: Avanguardia avanguardie," February 20–May 24, 2009, no. 81.
London. Tate Modern. "Futurism," June 12–September 20, 2009, no. 81.
New York. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. "Italian Futurism, 1909–1944: Reconstructing the Universe," February 21–September 1, 2014, no. 68.
Palazzo Reale, Milan. "Umberto Boccioni (1882-1916). Genio e Memoria," March 23–July 10, 2016, no. 162.
Maurizio Calvesi and Ester Coen. Boccioni: L'opera completa. Milan, 1983, pp. 431–33, no. 774.
Gerald Silk. "At Home with the Future: In New York, Lydia Winston Malbin's Futurist Art Rivals Italy's Best." House & Garden 158 (October 1986), p. 280, ill. pp. 206, 210 (color, installation photos).
Ester Coen. Umberto Boccioni. Exh. cat., The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York, 1988, pp. 211–13, no. 86, ill.
Michael Brenson. "Met Retrospective Explores Boccioni and Futurism." New York Times (September 16, 1988), p. C24.
Lisa M. Messinger in "Recent Acquisitions. A Selection: 1989–1990." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 48 (Fall 1990), pp. 68–69, ill.
Barbara Burn, ed. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide. 2nd rev. ed. (1st ed., 1983). New York, 1994, p. 454, no. 40, ill. (color).
Grace Glueck. "On a Trip Back to Futurism, Women and Settings Merge." New York Times (July 3, 1998), p. E34.
Peter Nagy. "Art Review: 'Boccioni and Women'." Time Out New York (August 13–20, 1998) [p. ?].
Laura Mattioli Rossi inBoccioni: pittore, scultore, futurista. Ed. Laura Mattioli Rossi. Exh. cat., Palazzo Reale. Milan, 2006, pp. 42, 183, no. 20, fig. 28 (color).
Maria Elena Versari. "Recasting the Past: On the Posthumous Fortune of Futurist Sculpture." Sculpture Journal 23, no. 3 (2014), pp. 359–61, 367 n. 59.
Dakin Hart inMark Grotjahn: Masks. Exh. cat., Gagosian Gallery. New York, 2015, p. 191, fig. 13 (color).
Alessandro Del Puppo inUmberto Boccioni (1882-1916). Genio e Memoria. Ed. Francesca Rossi. Exh. cat., Palazzo Reale. Milan, 2016, pp. 169–70, ill. pp. 155, 171 (color).
Alberto Dambruoso in Maurizio Calvesi and Alberto Dambruoso. Umberto Boccioni: Catalogo Generale delle Opere. Turin, 2016, pp. 344–45, 405, no. 438, ill. pp. 344, 404 (color).
Rosalind McKever. "Frozen in the Future." Apollo 184 (July–August 2016), p. 64, fig. 4 (color).
The ninth-annual Women and the Critical Eye program featuring a conversation between Emily Braun and Rebecca Rabinow, who discuss Leonard Lauder's criteria for collecting, including the importance of the "aesthetic wow," rarity, state of conservation, and attention to a work's curriculum vitae.
Umberto Boccioni (Italian, Reggio 1882–1916 Sorte)
1909–10
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