Single Form
by Barbara Hepworth, 1964
Details
- Year
- 1964
- Medium
- Bronze
- Size
- 640 cm (21 ft) tall
British artist Barbara Hepworth created this Single Form in 1964 as a memorial to her friend Dag Hammarskjöld, the UN Secretary-General who died in a 1961 plane crash. The monumental bronze stands 21 feet tall at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, its pierced circular form suggesting both presence and absence.
Hepworth had given a smaller version of the sculpture to Hammarskjöld, who kept it in his office. After his death, the UN commissioned this enlarged version for their plaza. The single standing form, with its characteristic Hepworth hole, has been read as a symbol of individual dignity facing the vastness of collective humanity.
Hepworth was a pioneer of direct carving and abstract sculpture in Britain, working alongside Henry Moore in the 1930s. Her work often explored the relationship between solid form and void, interior and exterior. Single Form represents her most public commission and one of the most visible sculptures at the UN.
About Single Form
The sculpture stands in the UN Headquarters plaza in New York City, facing the Secretariat building. Smaller versions exist at the Barbara Hepworth Museum in St Ives, Cornwall, and other collections.
Hepworth created it as a memorial to Dag Hammarskjöld, UN Secretary-General, who died in 1961. He had owned a smaller version. The UN commissioned the enlarged bronze after his death.
The UN version stands 640 centimeters tall (21 feet). Hepworth worked with bronze foundries to scale up her original design for this monumental public commission.
Hepworth's pierced forms were her signature. The hole creates a dialogue between solid and void, presence and absence. For this memorial, it suggests both individual dignity and the loss of Hammarskjöld.
Own Art Like This
Luxury wall art with the same mood and energy. Gallery-quality canvas, no museum crowds.
Browse Collection