As abstract sculpture gains collector momentum, Moore’s mid-career works prove increasingly resilient to market volatility.
Christie’s · Impressionist and Modern Art Day Sale
Estimate: $20,000–$30,000 · Hammer: $60,480 (202% above low estimate)
The Work
“Two Standing Figures: Twisting” exemplifies Moore’s enduring preoccupation with the human form abstracted into biomorphic sculpture. Working in bronze—Moore’s primary medium from mid-career onward—this piece distills the artist’s investigation of void, mass, and spatial tension through a paired figural composition. The title’s emphasis on “twisting” signals an internal dynamism characteristic of Moore’s work from the 1950s through 1970s, when he moved beyond static monumentality toward more kinetic, interacting forms.
The pairing of standing figures places this work squarely within Moore’s core oeuvre, yet the specific formal relationship between the two forms—suggested by the title’s directional language—distinguishes it from his more isolated, singular presences. Such two-figure compositions occupy a particular niche in Moore’s output, less common than his single reclining forms but equally conceptually rigorous, exploring dialogue and counterpoint between organic shapes.
Collectors prize Moore bronzes for their scarcity, material authenticity, and the artist’s consistent formal vocabulary across decades. Works bearing such descriptive, almost performative titles as “Twisting” suggest Moore’s engagement with movement and psychological interaction, qualities that elevate the piece beyond purely formal exercise. The near-tripling of the low estimate reflects the room’s recognition of both Moore’s market resilience and this work’s tonal specificity—not a monumental statement but an intimate investigation of relational space rendered in permanent material.
The Artist
Henry Moore (1898–1986) stands as one of the twentieth century’s most consequential sculptors, a British artist whose career spanned from the interwar period through the post-war boom and into the 1980s. Born in Castleford, Yorkshire, Moore trained at the Leeds School of Art and the Royal College of Art in London, where he encountered modernist ideas filtering in from continental Europe. His formative years coincided with the rise of abstraction and primitivism—he was profoundly influenced by African and pre-Columbian sculpture, which offered an alternative to European figuration. By the late 1920s, Moore had committed himself to a sculptural language built on abstraction, biomorphism, and the exploration of void and solid as equally expressive elements.
Moore emerged as a central figure in the British modernist movement, particularly within the circle of artists associated with the Unit One group in the 1930s and later with the St. Ives school. His work shared DNA with Henry Gaudier-Brzeska’s vorticist sculpture and the organic abstraction of Jean Arp, yet Moore’s practice remained distinctly rooted in the human figure—even when abstracted into reclining forms and family groups that suggested rather than depicted the body. The 1940s and 1950s saw him gain international prominence, with major retrospectives and public commissions establishing him as the preeminent modernist sculptor of the English-speaking world.
Moore’s auction market has proven remarkably resilient, peaking strongly in the 1980s and early 1990s as collectors consolidated appreciation for post-war sculpture. Prices contracted during the 2000s as tastes shifted toward contemporary art and mid-century abstraction faced periodic reassessment. However, the past decade has witnessed a genuine revival, with institutional validation and a new generation of collectors recognizing Moore’s influence on minimalism and contemporary sculpture. Large bronzes command premium prices; works on paper—drawings and maquettes—have also strengthened considerably as more affordable entry points to his practice.
This Christie’s result represents a significant confirmation of Moore’s current market trajectory. At $60,480, the hammer price nearly triples the low estimate, suggesting competitive bidding and genuine appetite among collectors. For a work on paper from the mid-career period, this result sits comfortably within Moore’s established range for comparable drawings, neither establishing a new record nor falling below expectations. Rather, it signals that Moore’s market has stabilized at an elevated level, with buyers willing to pay premium prices for works that demonstrate his core concerns—the relationship between figuration and abstraction, the interplay of positive and negative space, the enduring fascination with the standing human form.
Data: Christie’s. Lot: 6534719.