Moore once recalled that it was on hearing, aged eleven, an anecdote about Michelangelo carving a stone head that he decided to become a sculptor. Stone as a material was central to Moore's artistic trajectory; between 1922 and 1984 he created 215 carvings in addition to his work in bronze. He believed firmly in the notion of 'truth to materials', arguing that ‘sculpture in stone should look like stone, hard and concentrated. To make stone look like flesh and blood, hair and dimples, is coming down to the level of the stage conjurer.’

Nonetheless, he also believed that an artist's vision for his subject must take precedence over the nature of the physical material used, and in his later years he created a stunning array of lithographs that sought to capture the essence of carved stone in two dimensions. This piece also demonstrates with wonderful vivacity the range of marks and techniques that can be used in the process of making lithographic prints.

Earlier in his career Moore had produced a variety of sculptures depicting heads and abstractions from the human figure. Embracing the Cubist instinct to reassemble form in new and imaginative ways, he also conducted extensive research into Prehistoric, Cycladic, African and Mexican art. Mexican sculpture struck a particular chord with the artist:

'As soon as I found it, seemed to me true and right, perhaps because I at once hit on similarities in it with some eleventh-century carvings I had seen as a boy in Yorkshire churches. Its ‘stoniness’, by which I mean its truth to material, its tremendous power without loss of sensitiveness, its astonishing variety and fertility of form-invention and its approach to a full three-dimensional conception of form, make it unsurpassed in my opinion by any other period of stone sculpture.'

This piece is a stunning example of Moore's lifelong interest in carved stone forms and a vivid demonstration of his consummate skills as a printmaker. In stunning condition, this original, hand-signed lithograph celebrates some of Moore's most iconic works and deserves a place in any collection of original British prints.

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