Torso, Navel, Mustache-Flower

Jean Arp

1930 · Oil on wood relief · Modern and Contemporary Art

Arp is best known for his multilayered, painted wood reliefs. By the time Arp created this work, he had already perfected his assemblage technique: he drew designs on cardboard templates and had a carpenter execute them in wood. The title of this relief identifies the curvilinear and irregular biomorphic shapes as a torso, a navel, and a flower with a mustache. Arp associated the mustache form with specific individuals, such as the German emperor Wilhelm II, and the navel form with the beginning of life.

Artist

Jean Arp

Date

1930

Medium

Oil on wood relief

Department

Modern and Contemporary Art

Credit line

The Muriel Kallis Steinberg Newman Collection, Gift of Muriel Kallis Newman, 2006