A long-lost sculpture by Dame Barbara Hepworth, one of Britain’s most celebrated modernist artists, was found last February in an office at the Bryanston School in Dorset.
The polished bronze Single Form artwork was initially gifted to the school in 1975 by a former governor to inspire students in the creative arts. For decades, the sculpture resided quietly in the headmaster’s office, where its significance was overlooked until Laura Sweetenham, the newly appointed archivist at the school, identified it during an artefact inventory.
Dame Barbara Hepworth once said, “I believe in the profound influence of sculpture on the human spirit.” This story, blending the history of art and education, is a testament to her enduring vision.
The discovery has sparked excitement at Bryanston, with headteacher Richard Jones describing the forthcoming auction as a transformative opportunity for the school’s art funding fund. “We are thrilled to have a chance to make a significant difference to our Bryanston Art Bursary Fund,” Jones said.
The rediscovery of this sculpture means the school will have an exciting prospect of providing opportunities for talented students who might not otherwise be able to benefit from Bryanston education.
Auctioning this historical artwork embodies our ethos and longstanding motto, ‘et nova et veteran’, the old and new, honouring the original intention behind the donation.
The sculpture, created in 1962, was inspired by Hepworth’s earlier 1937 carving of the name, which remains part of the Hepworth estate and is now on display at London’s Courtauld Gallery. The discovery also solves a mystery, as the work was thought lost.
The artwork is a “remarkable piece by the most important woman sculptor of the 20th century,” he said. Art adviser Guy Schwinge of Hanover Forbes noted that proceeds from the sale are expected to significantly increase the school’s bursary fund, ensuring future generations of promising young artists can study at Bryanston.
The school’s alumni include Terence Conran, Lucian Freud, and Howard Hodgkin. The auction of Single Form is anticipated to attract international interest.
Hepworth, born in Wakefield in 1903, became an icon of modern sculpture. She pioneered the technique of direct carving, whereby the relationship between the artist and the material becomes essential. Her works epitomise a harmonious marriage between abstraction and nature.
Hepworth studied at Leeds School of Art from 1920–1921 alongside fellow Yorkshire-born artist Henry Moore. Both students continued their studies in sculpture at the Royal College of Art in London. Both became leading practitioners of the avant-garde method of Direct Carving (working directly into the chosen material), avoiding the more traditional process of making preparatory models and maquettes from which a craftsman would produce the finished work.
From 1924, Hepworth spent two years in Italy, and in 1925, she married her first husband, the artist John Skeaping, in Florence; their marriage lasted until 1931. From 1932, she lived with the painter Ben Nicholson, and for several years, the two artists worked near each other, developing a way of working that was almost like a collaboration. They spent periods travelling throughout Europe, and it was here that Hepworth met Georges Braque and Piet Mondrian and visited the studios of Picasso, Constantin Brancusi, Jean Arp and Sophie Taueber-Arp. The experience was a hugely exciting one for Hepworth, for she not only found herself in the studios of some of Europe’s most influential artists, which helped her to approach her career with renewed vigour and clarity, but also found their mutual respect. The School of Paris had a lasting effect on both Hepworth and Nicholson as they became key figures in an international network of abstract artists.
The work will be auctioned at Dukes Auctioneers in April 2025