Lynn Chadwick: Retrospectives: Blain|Di Donna and Blain|Southern in Collaboration with Bill Katz

The directors of Blain|Di Donna and Blain|Southern are delighted to present the largest ever survey of Lynn Chadwick's work, with three concurrent exhibitions of his work in London, Berlin and New York.  The shows will explore the sculptor's 50-year career, with each offering a distinct curatorial focus as envisioned by the exhibition designer Bill Katz.

Blain|Di Donna will be focusing on Chadwick's early works, best displayed in some unique early sculpture such as Balanced Sculpture (1951), Untitled (1952), Iron Sculpture (1953) and Maquette II Inner Eye (1952-1953), the latter being one of the preparatory maquettes for Inner Eye (1952), which is in the collection of MoMA. Another rarity is a working model of Teddy Boy and Girl (1957), an examination of dynamic movement that recalls the frenetic rock and roll dancing of Teddy Boys and Teddy Girls, a prominent subculture that spread through Britain during the 1950s. This sculpture shows the unique way Chadwick worked from the mid-1950s to the end of his life, a process involving welded steel armatures and Stolit, a mixture of iron filings and plaster.

The Stranger (1954) was exhibited at the XXVIII Venice Biennale in 1956, the year Chadwick won the coveted International Sculpture Prize. This work illustrates not only Chadwick's unerring fascination with human and animal forms, but also the manner in which he blurred the lines between figuration and abstraction.  Other works, such as Two Dancing Figures III, (1954) and Conjunction II (1957) examine the human form, and his interest in capturing movement; while Aga Cant - Old Watcher (1959) and Rad Lad IV (1962) reveal the influence of the Easter Island figures on his work. The three exhibitions will be accompanied by two new publications on the artist. Lynn Chadwick: The Sculptures at Lypiatt Park will be available from May, while a second publication that will document the three exhibitions will be available in June.

Lynn Chadwick (1914-2003) was one of the leading sculptors of post-war Britain.  He first came to international attention at the Venice Biennale in 1952, showing work which eschewed the traditional sculptural traditions. Instead of marble, wood or stone, Chadwick and his fellow exhibitors at the British Pavilion embraced iron structures, plaster filler and industrial compounds. Four years later, Chadwick was awarded the coveted International Sculpture Prize at the 1956 Biennale, becoming the youngest sculptor ever to do so and beating the favorite, Alberto Giacometti.  Lynn Chadwick's sculptures are featured in the collections of most major museums, including MoMA, New York; Tate Gallery, London; and Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris.

Bill Katz is an architect and designer who has worked with many leading artists including Anselm Kiefer, Cy Twombly, Francesco Clemente, Robert Indiana and Jasper Johns. He has designed exhibitions at the Centre Pompidou and the Grand Palais in Paris, the Royal Academy in London, and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation in New York and Bilbao.