Man with a Watersack

1897

George Minne Belgian, 1866-1941

On View

Modern, Level 2, North Wing

Man with a Watersack: 1 of Collection Gallery

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About the Artwork

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Markings

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Provenance

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Exhibition History

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Published References

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Catalogue Raisonné

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Credit Line for Reproduction

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About the Artwork

The young man strains to pour water from a primitive knotted skin sack, his simple stance contrasts with the contorted pose of his arms and head. A sculptor associated with the symbolist movement, Minne thus uses the body of the boy to suggest the awkwardness of adolescence.

Title Man with a Watersack

Artwork Date 1897

Artist George Minne

Life Dates 1866-1941

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. Belgian

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. Unknown

Medium Plaster

Dimensions Overall (figure): 24 1/2 × 16 × 8 1/4 inches (62.2 × 40.6 × 21 cm) Overall (base): 3 3/8 × 16 5/8 × 11 1/4 inches (8.6 × 42.2 × 28.6 cm)

Classification Sculpture

Department European Sculpture and Dec Arts

Credit Founders Society Purchase, Mr. and Mrs. Allan Shelden III Fund and the Henry Ford II Fund

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 1986.48

Markings

Signed Signed, on surface of base, at center, between figure's feet: GMINNE

Inscriptions ------

Provenance

Atelier of Minne

purchased by Minne's doctor from the family. (Shepherd Associates Gallery)

1986-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

For more information on provenance and its important function in the museum, please visit:

Provenance page

Exhibition History

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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.

We welcome your feedback for correction and/or improvement.

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Published References

De Ridder, A. George Minne. Antwerp and Amsterdam, 1947, no. 10 (ill.).

George Minne en de Kunst Rond 1900. Exh. cat., Museum voor Schonon Kunster. Ghent, 1982, pp. 35-40, p. 133, no. 59.

Retospektieve Leon de Smet 1881-1966. Exh. cat., Museum Leon De Smet. Sint-Martens-Latem, 1986, unpaginated (ill.).

Darr, A.P. "European sculpture and decorative arts acquired by the Detroit Institute of Arts 1978-87." The Burlington Magazine 130 (June 1988): p. 500 (fig. 116).

Alhadeff, A. "Meunier and Minne: subterranean visions and the blue summits of the soul." Bulletin of the DIA 65, no. 1 (1989): pp. 23-35 (ill.).

"Principales acquisitions des musees en 1986." La Chronique des arts et de la curiosité: supplement to Gazette des beaux-arts, no. 1418 (March 1987): p. 26, no. 163 (ill.).

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Catalogue Raisoneé

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Credit Line for Reproduction

George Minne, Man with a Watersack, 1897, plaster. Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase, Mr. and Mrs. Allan Shelden III Fund and the Henry Ford II Fund, 1986.48.