Metal Lighter than Air: Examining Art Of Richmond Barthè

Richmond Barthè: Harlem Renaissance Sculptor

August 4th - November 5th, 2023

Jepson Center, Savannah GA.

Recently the Telfair Museums has opened a Richmond Barthè (1901-1989) exhibition that I had the pleasure to see yesterday morning. One piece that I saw drew my attention almost instantly. Both for its composition and its execution. Bronze conveys elite status in the art cannon, one that has its roots tethered to the best known artists of the ancient past and the ever present contemporary world. I marvel at the material, and I marvel that Barthè was able to use it so effortlessly. I would love to talk about this piece and how I felt when I stepped into the gallery space and saw it, tucked away in the back left corner of the room. Almost as if I was struck by cupids arrow, I immediately became enamored in the work. It was as though it was the only thing in the room, save for myself. We were but two objects colliding. This analysis of the piece is based entirely off my love I have for it, I wanted to create an exercise that did not require me to do any in-depth study on the piece (at least, not yet).

Inner Music, 1956. Collection of Samella Lewis. Photo by me.

What struck me most about this piece is the extreme contrapposto stance the figure takes, the downcast eyes and the elongated, mannerist limbs that sway and move, or dances to his inner music; something this figure is only able to hear. The bronze alone is impressive enough, as most of the weight the figure carries is shifted to the left leg, making the stride of the right leg appear to be sweeping across the front of the figure, diagonal his body, as weightless as a feather. The figure’s expert skills are shown by how we see Barthè has placed the toes; as though sliding across the ground and gliding on a water's unbroken, glass surface.

One can feel the movement and see the fleshiness of his body and the sheen of his sweat, emphasized by the overhead light dramatically on the figure. He is center stage in this performance. His body twists and contorts to the beat which is inside only his mind. Determination and contemplation overtake him, which can be seen in his eyes; ever so pensive and seeming to look at no fixed point or object. As the figure sways this way and that, careful deliberation has the viewer anticipate the next move he will make. No matter how the figure is viewed, every angle of the work seems to be a piece of its own. This makes the dynamic movement ever that more impressive.

Creating such movement in metal astounds me, as most of the weight of the piece is balanced on the back left leg, and countered by the placement of the arms and hips of the figure. When looking very close to the surface one can see the clay molding, the marks and indents that Barthè’s fingers left behind while he was creating and sculpting this figure from the earth. Bringing a meditative, yet melancholy, piece of metal to life, we are witnessing the artist at work. Perhaps not only Barthè’s physical process, but that of his inner artistic psychology as well.

Details of Inner Music, 1956. Photos by me.