Artwork
Study for a sculpture
Study for a sculpture is a drawing by Pietro Consagra. It dates from 1958 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
The marks outline elongated, box‑like volumes filled with hatching and occasional circular accents, suggesting preliminary ideas for a larger sculptural work.
Created in 1958, this preparatory drawing by Pietro Consagra consists of six gestural sketches rendered in black felt‑tip pen on white paper. The marks outline elongated, box‑like volumes filled with hatching and occasional circular accents, suggesting preliminary ideas for a larger sculptural work. The sheet bears Consagra’s signature, the date, and an Italian annotation regarding the intended materials, while a later pencil addition records the artist’s first name.
Subject & Meaning
The drawing functions as a visual notebook, capturing multiple exploratory forms that the sculptor was considering. Each slender, rectangular silhouette is dissected with internal lines, indicating an investigation of surface texture, volume, and the interplay of light and shadow. The inclusion of small circles and dots hints at focal points or attachment sites within the prospective three‑dimensional pieces.
Technique & Style
Consagra employed a thin felt‑tip pen to produce rapid, uneven strokes that convey immediacy. Repeated parallel lines fill the interior of each shape, overlapping in places to generate denser tonal areas. This cross‑hatching approach, combined with occasional freehand marks, reveals a spontaneous, experimental method typical of mid‑century modernist sculpture studies.
History & Provenance
The work originates from Consagra’s studio in the late 1950s, a period when he was actively developing large metal sculptures. The paper bears his handwritten note in Italian about the materials to be used, confirming its function as a personal design record. A later pencil inscription of his first name indicates a subsequent handling, possibly by a collector or archivist, before the drawing entered its present collection.
Artist & collection
Artist
Pietro Consagra (6 October 1920 – 16 July 2005) was an Italian sculptor. In 1947 he was among the founding members of the Forma 1 group of artists, who advocated both Marxism and structured abstraction.
