Belgium, late 19th century / 1898
Solidarity
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs Solidarity as sculpture (Belgium, late 19th century · 1898).
Minnne’s sculpture explores spiritual life and inner conflict. His work focused on premodern themes and greatly influenced artists in Belgium, France, and Germany.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this sculpture as marble and credits George Minne (Belgian, 1866–1941).
The museum's collection notes: In 1898, the Belgian Labor Party commissioned George Minne to make a memorial for Jean Volders, the Socialist movement leader. Rather than making a traditional portrait, Minne represented the socialist ideal of prioritizing cooperation over competition, creating an allegory of brotherhood with two nude men standing in a boat, anxiously trying to keep their balance in a storm. The Labor Party disliked Minne’s design and withdrew the commission. In anger, Minne destroyed his nearly 10-foot-tall plaster model, but the artist’s friends and contemporary critics recognized the power of the sculpture. A smaller study survived and was later cast in b
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