Two Figures is the title of multiple artworks, most notably a bronze sculpture by the English sculptor Barbara Hepworth (1903–1975), cast in an edition of seven copies in 1968.
Barbara Hepworth's Two Figures (1968)
Two Figures is a bronze sculpture by Barbara Hepworth, cast in an edition of seven at the Morris Singer Foundry in London from 1968 onward. The sculpture measures 230 cm × 120 cm × 38 cm (89 in × 49 in × 15 in). It consists of two highly stylized, lozenge-shaped vertical figures standing upon a rectilinear base. Each figure has a frontal, symmetrical, flat surface contrasting with the gentle curve of the surfaces on the other sides. The front of each figure features deep, circular holes, a characteristic element of Hepworth's sculptural work. The bronze is patinated a rich dark brown and is seated on a limestone base.
The two figures have subtle differences. The figure on the proper right (PR) is slightly shorter than its partner on the proper left (PL). PR has two circular holes cut into its front surface; the higher one pierces entirely through the sculpture, while the lower one goes only halfway through. PL has three circular holes and a roughly triangular horizontal cross-section.
Hepworth considered artworks in her Two Figures theme to represent a relationship between two living things, as opposed to her solo figures, which she described as representing a human standing in a landscape. The first instance of Hepworth's Two Figures theme was a wooden artwork from 1947–1948.
Locations of casts:
- Newfields (Indianapolis Museum of Art), Indianapolis, Indiana (cast 6/7)
- Southampton University (on loan from the Hepworth Estate)
- Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, University of Oklahoma
- Commonwealth Park, Canberra, Australia
- Hakone Open-Air Museum, Hakone, Japan
- A cast formerly at the University of Birmingham Vale site (removed as of January 2, 2012)
The Indianapolis Museum of Art's copy was acquired in 1980 through the Henry F. and Katherine DeBoest Fund and is displayed on the Sutphin Mall.
Barbara Hepworth's Two Figures (Menhirs) (1954–1955)
An earlier work by Hepworth, Two Figures (Menhirs) (c. 1954–1955), is a teak and paint sculpture measuring 144.8 × 61 × 44.4 cm (57 × 24 × 17.5 in.). It is in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. The sculpture is composed of two vertical forms on a platform, punctuated by white-painted circular or oval concavities. The parenthetical title "Menhirs" references the Neolithic standing stones found in Cornwall, England, where Hepworth lived during World War II.
Other artworks titled Two Figures
- Paul Manship – A pencil drawing titled Two Figures is in the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum (Bequest of Paul Manship, 1966.47.324).
- Andy Warhol – A graphite on translucent dark cream wove paper drawing titled Two Figures (sheet: 59.2 × 47.3 cm) is in the collection of the Brooklyn Museum (Bequest of George Klauber, 2005.26).
- Le Corbusier (Charles-Édouard Jeanneret) – A watercolor, graphite, and brush and black ink work titled Two Figures (1907–1963) is in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago (Bequest of Hedwig B. Schniewind, 1963.428).
- Francis Bacon – Two Figures in the Grass (1954) is an oil on canvas painting (152 × 117 cm) by the Irish-born British painter.
General usage
Outside of specific artwork titles, the phrase "two figures" is context-dependent. In mathematics and finance, it commonly refers to a two-digit number (ranging from 10 to 99) or a monetary amount in that range. In art and illustration, it simply denotes a depiction of two human or humanoid forms. In colloquial speech, it may be used loosely to indicate an imprecise small quantity.
