Eduardo Paolozzi
Vulcan, 1999
Bronze
800 × 300 × 300 cm
This monumental sculpture of Vulcan, the Roman god of fire and metalworking, is shown brandishing the blacksmith’s hammer. The figure is half man and half machine, a possible commentary on the sometimes gruelling work of a sculptor. The bronze was one of the last works that the Scottish-born sculptor Eduardo Paolozzi (1924-2005) made. It is part of a series of figures of Vulcan, created by the artist in a variety of forms and media. They demonstrate the influences of surrealism, early modernism and cubism, which Paolozzi first become acquainted with in Paris in 1947-9. In France, he befriended many artists including Alberto Giacometti (1901-66), Jean Arp (1886-1966) and Georges Braque (1882-1963).
Pangolin London
Image: Luis Veloso
