Melanie le Brocquy, H.R.H.A. b.1919

'...one of the most gifted and individual sculptors active since the second World War..' (Brian Fallon, Melanie le Brocquy, exh.cat., Royal Hibernian Academy June - August 1999, p.9)

Executed circa 1964, the present work is unique.

Born in Dublin, le Brocquy studied at the N.C.A.D., Dublin then the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Geneva before returning to the Royal Hibernian Academy School, Dublin.  Man Standing was particularly inspired by the work of the British sculptor Reg Butler and the elongated form and textured surface of the present work is characteristic of le Brocquy's oeuvre from the 1960s and comparable to the slender proportions of her Crucifix (1962) and Tall Figure (1965).

Having exhibited at seminal shows such as the numerous Irish Exhibitions of Living Art in Dublin and having shared shows with her brother Louis le Brocquy as well as with William Scott and Patrick Heron, le Brocquy has been the subject of two important Retrospectives; the first held at The Taylor Galleries, Dubin in 1986 and then at the Royal Hibernian Academy, Dublin in 1999. Her work is held in numerous public collections including the Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane, the collection of the Arts Council of Ireland and the National Self-Portrait Collection, Limerick.