Marino Marini

Dominion Gallery, Montreal
Sale: Sotheby Parke Bernet Inc., New York, 22nd October 1980, lot 80
Purchased at the above sale by the late owners

Helmut Lederer & Eduard Trier, The Sculpture of Marino Marini, London & Stuttgart, 1961, nos. 110 & 111, illustrations of another cast
Patrick Waldberg, Herbert Read & Gualtieri di San Lazzaro, Marino Marini, Complete Works, New York, 1970, no. 312, illustration of another cast p. 370
Carlo Pirovano, Marino Marini. Scultore, Milan, 1972, no. 317, illustration of another cast p. 166
'Hommage à Marino Marini', in XXe Siècle, Paris, 1974, p. 66
Ellen Maurer, Marino Marini - Kunstwerke 3, Munich, 1997, no. 16, illustration of another cast p. 45
Marco Meneguzzo, Marino Marini - Cavalli e Cavalieri, Milan, 1997, no. 76
Fondazione Marino Marini (ed.), Marino Marini, Catalogue Raisonné of the Sculptures, Milan, 1998, no. 392b, colour illustration of another cast p. 274

From 1951, Marini embarked on his series of 'Miracles', highly stylised versions of the horse and rider theme, of which this work is a remarkable example. In choosing this subject, Marini draws on a long established tradition of equestrian painting and sculpture, that had its prominent place in more or less every period throughout the history of Western art, from small-scale votive renderings of early civilisations, to the grand, triumphant statues of modern-day rulers and military leaders. While firmly grounding his art in this tradition, in contrast to the often bombastic and politically motivated sculptures created by his predecessors, Marini's horses and riders acquire a more spiritual, and often mystical character, to become a timeless symbol of humanity. Throughout his career, Marini's equestrian sculptures grew increasingly stylised and abstract, and Piccolo miracolo is a powerful reflection of the artist's ever more dramatic view of the world.

 

Carlo Pirovano wrote of Miracolo as 'the motif of the rearing horse with the rider thrown back, so that he ends up by clinging to the saddle, with the transformation of the symbolic roles assigned to the two protagonists. In the final stage of this emblematic and stylistic event, the two forms - they are either antithetical or complementary - are clearly identified, at least as far as the alternate dynamism of the impulses, is concerned but their outward appearances tend to correspond and merge so that they resemble indistinguishable larviform phantasms, corroded and deformed by a mysterious blow or by events that are too obscure for us to grasp. This is a testimony to turmoil rather than the record of a story' (C. Pirovano, Marino Marini, Mitografia (exhibition catalogue), Galleria dello Scudo, Verona, 1994-95, p. 106).

 

The polychrome plaster of Piccolo miracolo is now in the collection of Staatsgalerie Moderner Kunst in Munich. Some of the bronze casts of this work are in internationally renowned public collections such as the Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto and the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, D.C.

 

The present cast formed part of the collection of Larry and Leah Superstein, who assembled pieces from a broad range of collecting areas in their spectacular Beverly Hills home. From fascinating Inuit sculptures by the native artists of Northwest Canada, to superb modern works by Picasso, Rodin and Marini, they bought with great taste and discernment. Larry and Leah Superstein were also formidable in their philanthropy, supporting many causes in Canada, Israel and the United States. They were extremely generous to visual and performing arts institutions in Los Angeles, especially to the various companies at the LA Music Center and the Los Angeles High School for the Arts.