In 1909, the sculptor Alexander Archipenko (1887, Kiew – 1964, New York) moved to Paris and became an integral part of the artistic world of the capital. The young Ukrainian lends a particular interest to the works of extra-European civilisations, of which he was able to admire a large number in the Louvre as well as in various ethnological collections of the Parisian metropolis. Moreover, his artistic creation denotes the influences of the formal experiments by the Cubists in Paris at the beginning of the century. While in his early works he gives his figures imposing and compact proportions, from 1912 he will use more elongated and expressive forms. In addition, the use of motifs suggesting movement enabled him to constantly challenge the rules of stasis.

Kathrin Elvers-Švamberk is the Deputy Director of the Saarlandmuseum since 2013. A doctor in art history, classical archeology and German studies, she also organised exhibitions focusing on sculpture, painting and graphic arts, dedicated, among others, to Paul Klee, Alexander Archipenko, and the artist group BRÜCKE.