ΦFredda Brilliant (Polish 1903-1999)

ΦFredda Brilliant (Polish 1903-1999)
Portrait of Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948), first maquette for the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial in Tavistock Square, London
Signed Fredda Brilliant (to reverse)
Bronze
27.2 x 17.4 x 12.1cm

Provenance:
Private Collection, London

Literature:
Fredda Brilliant, Biographies in Bronze (Shapolsky Books, 1986), pp.5, 9 (illustrated)

Fredda Brilliant first conceived of the idea of a sculpture of Mahatma Gandhi in 1949, but it was not until the early 1960s that she was commissioned to make the memorial in Tavistock Square, London. She initially explored three poses, one of Gandhi standing, one of him walking, and the final one offered here, sitting cross-legged, a pose she described as "traditional and intimate, suited to the small but beautiful [Tavistock] square". Once a pose had been decided on, Brilliant created a metal armature, the first maquette (the present work), the second maquette (sold in these rooms, 5th June 2019, lot 44, £65,000), before the final figure, one and a half times life size.