Giacomo Manzù

GIACOMO MANZÙ (Bergamo, 1908 - Rome, 1991)
"Striptease".
Proof in bronze with dark patina.
With stamp "MANZÙ FONDERIA MAF MILANO" on the reverse.
On bronze base.
Unique piece.
Provenance: Acquired directly from the artist in 1959. By descent. Private collection, Monaco.
The Fondazione Giacomo Manzù has confirmed the authenticity of this work, which is referenced in its archives.
Measurements: 59 cm (height).

This work represents one of the most intimate aspects of Giacomo Manzù's production: the exploration of the female figure and sensuality. The movement of undressing, far from any anecdotal or provocative connotation, is treated by Manzù as a suspended, almost introspective act. The elongated body adopts a slight twist that introduces a subtle internal rhythm, characteristic of his mature sculpture.

The surface of the bronze retains a lively texture, where the traces of manual labor remain visible. The dark patina accentuates the play of light and shadow, reinforcing the tactile dimension of the work.

Made in 1959 - a moment of full artistic maturity - this piece reflects Manzù's ability to reconcile modernity and tradition, distancing himself from both academicism and radical abstraction. It shows his particular realism, heir to Renaissance and Etruscan art, but reinterpreted from a fully contemporary sensibility.

Giacomo Manzù was one of the fundamental figures of Italian sculpture in the 20th century. After a stay in Paris, he settled in Milan in 1929. His nude Francesca Blanc was awarded a prize at the 1943 Rome Quadrennial, consolidating his prestige. He achieved international renown thanks to monumental commissions, including the Porta della Morte for St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican and the Porta della Pace e della Guerra for the Church of St. Lawrence in Rotterdam.

In 1977 the Monumento al Partigiano was inaugurated in Bergamo, and in 1979 he donated to the Italian State his important collection assembled in Ardea. His last major public work was a six-meter monumental sculpture installed in 1989 at the United Nations headquarters in New York. Today his legacy is preserved in key institutions, such as the GAMeC in Bergamo, and remains an essential reference of modern sculptural realism.