Paul Robeson (1898-1976)
MOODY, Ronald Clive
Label from '[un]seen [un]heard]' display intervention 2020:
"This bust is a portrait of Paul Robeson an African American athlete, performing artist and activist created by Jamaican-born fellow Black artist Ronald Moody. During his time spent in Britain, Robeson developed a deep bond with the labour movement and was particularly supportive of the miners of Wales."
This portrait was commissiond by the DDR Akademie der Kunst, Berlin, but political mayhem forced them to renege. Despite this and Robeson's unpredictability as a sitter, it was ready in time for the SPS 'Human Rights' exhibition.
This dramatic head was the last of five portraits in this medium, which are essays in the juxtaposition of textural effects and patins. In each, the skin has the nubbly surface, developed during the artist's experimentation with concrete, but in these works it is more varied and much finer and contrasts subtly with other textures he achieves. Here honeycomb texture of the hair compliments the heavier texture of the skin, infusing the whole with immense tactility.
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Copyright statement provided by Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales
Details
Collection
Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales

Item Number
NMW A 26343
Creation/Production
MOODY, Ronald Clive
Date: 1968
Acquisition
Gift, 26/3/2004
Given by Cynthia Moody
Techniques
Cast
Forming
Applied Art
Material
Copper
Resin
Location
on display
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