George Grard

Loved by Grard

George Grard is not the sculptor of women, but of femininity. He loved the fullness of their forms.

Willem Elias touches upon the essence of George Grard's sculptures. The sculptor's oeuvre is characterized by one constant theme: the female nude. The ladies he models are just as steadfast as his subject. Standing, sitting or reclining, they define their surrounding space with their presence and volume.

In 1931, Grard settled in Sint-Idesbald, where he would meet artists such as Pierre Caille and Paul Delvaux. Here on the Belgian coast, he moved into a simple fisherman's house. Close to the sea he lived in harmony with nature. Many of his sculptures will contain subtle references to the elements of nature: a gentle breeze, the reflection of a sunbeam, a flower. Equally harmonious is the relationship between the artist and his models. Grard always had an intense connection with them, and he managed masterfully to incorporate the warm affection he cherished for each of them into the cool bronze.

Of all his seated figures, the “Printemps” is both the most complex and the simplest sculpture. After a process of intense refinement and perfection, the 1946 “Printemps à la couronne” will show minor differences from the “Printemps” of a year later. Grard sculpts a voluptuous woman in a relaxed yet robust posture. Confidently, she sits exactly where she needs to be. Her curvaceous contours, revealed by a piece of fabric casually slipped from her body, show her in her entirety: from her thighs, hips and breasts to her cheeks and lips. Her body is voluminous yet sensual, her smile is mysterious. Grard manages to cast the soft skin in bronze, its surface revealing every loving touch of the artist, chiseled and planed to perfection.