Exhibitions

On the eve of the 150th anniversary of Sigmund Freud’s birth, the Henry Moore Institute in association with the Freud Museum presents a unique opportunity to explore Freud’s relationship with sculpture. Until now, the sculptures and statuettes that he displayed on his desk have rarely been examined, but this exhibition highlights their meaning both individually and as an ensemble.

An avid collector of antiquities, Freud counted collecting, alongside smoking, as one of his two main addictions. Of the thousands of pieces he amassed he kept a small, but changing group on his desk; forming an audience of bronze, wood and marble sculptures, gathered from Egypt, China, Greece and Rome. As well as being a collector and writer, Freud was, in a sense, the ‘curator’ of these objects, many of which carry intricate connections to his writings and his practice.

First transported from Berggasse 19, Vienna to 20 Maresfield Gardens, London - where they are now preserved at the Freud Museum - their presentation at the Henry Moore Institute will echo their position on Freud’s desk, without going so far as to replicate it, provoking far-reaching questions about the relationship between sculpture and psychoanalysis.

Essays by Jon Wood (Henry Moore Institute), Michael Molnar and Ivan Ward (Freud Museum) will accompany the exhibition.