ABSTRACT
The Sculpture of Anne Kahane
Sylvia A. Antoniou
1992
Anne Kahane is a renowned Canadian sculptor and yet an
in-depth analysis of her development does not exist. Her development falls in distinct
periods although these do not occur into a convenient order. This thesis is an analysis of
the styles, the important works and the main themes from each period of Kahane's
sculptural production.
Her work was popular with collectors and public
institutions and, for a time, she was considered one of Canada's sculptors "par
excellence" by art critics and curators. By the mid-1970s the situation had changed.
An assessment of Kahane's work in relation to the evolution of sculpture in Canada will
assist the reader in understanding the reasons for her reputation, its decline and the
role of critics and curators in shaping it.
Kahane was a maverick who did not follow the prevailing
abstract movement in Canada. Her sculpture deals with the human form, albeit simplified.
By borrowing ideas and techniques from the Cubists, the Surrealists and other moderns, and
by combining these with her own inherent sense of design, Kahane developed a figurative
form that can be identified as hers alone. For a time, Kahane believed that her adherence
to the human form was a handicap. However, she was mistaken because today many artists
turn to the figurative as a form of expression.
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