Nude Woman With Hands Above The Head, Signed And Dated Giorgio Rossi 1945.

Tuscan Sculptor of the 20th Century – Female Nude, Dated 1945

Artist:
Giorgio Rossi (San Piero a Sieve, 1892 – Florence, 1963)

Title of the work:
Nude Woman with Hands Above the Head, 1945
Terracotta, signed and dated on the back ("Giorgio Rossi 1945")
Height: 52 cm

Description:
This elegant terracotta sculpture, signed and dated 1945, depicts a young nude woman standing next to a tree trunk, with her hands raised and resting behind her head. The figure strikes a delicate balance between introspection and poise, without ever falling into the rigidity of academic mannerism.

Carved with particular attention to the curving lines and the fluid rhythm of the pose, the sculpture recalls a quiet classical sensuality filtered through the lens of a refined Tuscan humanism. The work is representative of Rossi’s mature style, marked by a return to essential forms and the influence of the 15th-century Florentine masters, notably Donatello.

The figure's relaxed yet composed posture, the lean and well-structured anatomy, and the harmony of proportions reflect the sculptor’s pursuit of spiritual truth through simplicity of form. The sculpture is an expressive synthesis of grace and inner calm, in line with Rossi’s aesthetic ideals in the immediate post-war period.

A discreet and well-executed restoration is visible at the waist and right arm. According to the artist’s family, the damage was caused by the devastating flood of November 1966, which affected his studio on Via degli Artisti in Florence. The restoration was done with care and respect for the original patina.

Condition:
In good overall condition, with traces of an old restoration (waist and arm), consistent with the flood of 1966 in Florence, as confirmed by the artist’s family.

Provenance:
Directly from the family of the artist.

Unique character:
Unique piece, testimony to Rossi’s mature sculptural language and his personal interpretation of the female nude, free from academic rigidity and rich in inner harmony.

Exhibitions (artist's participation):
– 1906, 1912–13, 1916–18: Società di Belle Arti, Florence
– 1920: Mostra d’Arte Sacra, Venice
– 1925: Premio Principe Umberto, La Permanente, Milan
– 1930, 1936: Biennale di Venezia
– 2007: Giorgio Rossi. Scultore nel secolo breve, Sala delle Eroine, Palazzo Comunale, Pontassieve
– 2009: Giorgio Rossi. Un percorso nel Novecento, Sala Affreschi, Palazzo Panciatichi, Florence
– 2010: Le voci di dentro. La scultura di Giorgio Rossi, Ente Cassa di Risparmio di Firenze
– 2011: Nel segno della Sieve. L’avventura artistica di Giorgio Rossi, Palazzo Comunale, Pontassieve
– 2013: Volti dal passato. Giorgio Rossi e le sue Muse, Palazzo Medici Riccardi, Florence

Bibliography:
– Le voci di dentro. La scultura di Giorgio Rossi, ed. Stefano De Rosa, Florence, Edizioni Polistampa, 2010, p. 69 (illustrated)
– Gigi Salvagnini, Giorgio Rossi. Un lungo viaggio verso il Novecento, Centro Libero Andreotti, Florence, 2003, p. 20

Biography:
Giorgio Rossi was born in San Piero a Sieve in 1892. Trained at the Florence Academy of Fine Arts under Antonio Bortone, he cultivated a rigorous sculptural language anchored in Tuscan humanism and the early Renaissance tradition. His early works were exhibited from the age of 14 at the Società di Belle Arti in Florence and later at the Permanente in Milan and the Venice Biennale (1930 and 1936).

Throughout his career, Rossi sought a path independent from avant-garde excesses, favoring a sculptural vocabulary rooted in the 15th-century Florentine masters. His teaching post at the alabaster school in Volterra deeply influenced his technique and themes, particularly in the post-war period when he created more intimate and reflective pieces.

He received multiple awards, including a silver medal in 1916 and the title of Honorary Academician from the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno. After World War II, he continued working in relative isolation, producing some of his most poetic terracottas in his studio on Via Della Robbia in Florence.
He died in 1963, leaving behind a coherent and emotionally rich body of work.