Question: What appears to be two abstract forms intertwined in a perpetual embrace? That’s Henry Moore’s Locking Piece. It stands here on the lawn of Homerton College.
Locking Piece is on loan from the Henry Moore Foundation. Homerton College welcomed it for the college’s 250th anniversary. The sculpture sits proudly near West House and the Mary Allan building.
This particular cast is made of fiberglass. The original Locking Piece was bronze. Moore needed a lighter material for an exhibition in Florence in 1972. Fiberglass was not a conventional choice then.
Sebastiano Barassi unveiled Locking Piece at Homerton. He represented the Henry Moore Foundation. He said the sculpture embodies Moore’s innovative style. Homerton College also values innovation.
The artwork defies easy description. Different amorphous shapes appear from different angles. It features a central hole. The top piece rises over the bottom piece. A smaller disc separates the larger elements. It is like a piece of cartilage.
Donald Hall described it best. He said Locking Piece has two parts. They fit together like a child’s puzzle. It does not resemble one thing.
Moore drew inspiration from varied sources. He may have seen two pebbles locked together. Or perhaps a sawn bone fragment with a joint inspired him. The lower piece might be a vertebra’s echo.
Moore created small plaster models. None of these maquettes survived. A working model exists in the Art Gallery of Ontario.
The full-size plaster version was built up in layers. Assistants copied the working model initially. Moore then refined the surface with tools. The plaster model was finished in January 1964. It was sent to a foundry in Berlin for bronze casting. The original plaster version disappeared.
Two full-size fiberglass versions were cast in 1971. The Henry Moore Foundation holds both.
Locking Piece invites contemplation. It bridges art and education here at Homerton College. Take a moment to appreciate its form. Consider its place in art history. It is a testament to Moore’s genius.