Alexander Archipenko (1887-1964)
Lot 355 THE PROPERTY OF A PRIVATE SWISS COLLECTOR

Alexander Archipenko (1887-1964)

Walking

Closed3 February 2016

Price Realised

GBP 110,500

More Information

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Alexander Archipenko (1887-1964)
Walking
signed, dated, numbered and inscribed '5/8F Archipenko Paris 1912' (on the right) and inscribed 'apres moi viendront des jours quand cette oeuvre guidera et les artistes sculpteront l'espace et le temps' (on the left); stamped with the foundry mark 'Modern Art Fdry NY' (at the back)
bronze with polychrome patina in blue and green
Height: 26 1/2 in. (67.3 cm.)
Conceived in terracotta in 1912; this bronze version cast circa 1968 in an edition of eight

The artist's estate.
Acquired from the above in 1972.
Perls Galleries, New York.
Acquired from the above by the present owner in June 1988.

Specialist note

The Archipenko Foundation will include this work in the upcoming catalogue raisonné of sculptures by Alexander Archipenko.


In this historically pivotal subject, Archipenko innovatively uses negative space to emphasize the existence of the form, making this work quintessential in the history of the artist’s production. Walking also encompasses the first known attempt by any sculptor to use convex forms to replace the natural concavities of the human body.