558 - Marino Marini (1901, Pistoia – Viareggio, 1980)

Marino Marini (1901, Pistoia – Viareggio, 1980) Little Juggler (Piccolo giocoliere) Bronze with a black-brown patina. Approx. 44.5 x 9 x 13 cm. (1953). One of only 6 known examples. Monogrammed on the plinth. Carandente 385; Read/Waldberg/Lazzaro 306. Accompanied by a photographic expert report from the Fondazione Marino Marini, Pistoia, dated June 25, 2026. The work is registered in the Fondazione’s archive under number 446. • Created at the height of Marini’s career • Embodies Marini’s exploration of the role of the artist in modern society • From the art collection of Lyonel Feininger The sculpture “Little Juggler” was created in 1953—at the height of Marini’s artistic career. It is part of a series of nine bronze figures depicting jugglers and acrobats: slender, angular figures frozen in moments of tense movement. In these works, Marini impressively explores themes such as posture, balance, and the precarious equilibrium of human existence. Jugglers first appeared in Marini’s work in the 1920s, alongside dancers, acrobats, and harlequins. These motifs reflect his lifelong fascination with the world of the circus—a subject that also captivated artists such as Edgar Degas, Pablo Picasso, and Henri Matisse. Circus performers live on the margins of society, lead a nomadic existence, and offer their art to the public as a performance. In them, Marini and his contemporaries see a deeper metaphor for modern life: the artist as an outsider, a figure caught between the stage and reality. Our juggler stretches a short rope between his hands, seemingly forming a halo above his head—a sign of transcendence as well as an element of self-presentation. His body is dynamically twisted, held in an exaggerated contrapposto, the movement frozen in a moment of tension between playfulness and seriousness. Art historian Sam Hunter describes Marini’s jugglers as “heirs to a long and noble tradition of depicting Commedia dell’Arte actors [who] can barely bear their calling.” They belong to the world of entertainment, yet at the same time appear detached—impatient, melancholic, critical. In them, a sense of alienation and fragility in a changing world is condensed. Exhibition: Marino Marini, Curt Valentin Gallery, New York 1953, cat. no. 18. Provenance: Curt Valentin Gallery, New York (1953); Julia and Lyonel Feininger, New York, acquired from the aforementioned; Andreas Feininger, by inheritance; Wysse Gertrud Hägg-Feininger, by inheritance; Tomas Feininger (1935–2019), Québec, by inheritance; Tomas Feininger Estate, Québec. Taxation: subject to regular taxation (VAT: Regular Taxation).