Ossip Zadkine

(1888-1967)

Ossip Zadkine was a Russian-born sculptor and printmaker associated with Cubism and the School of Paris. Born in Smolensk, Russia, he moved to Paris in 1909 and became part of the avant-garde artistic community working alongside artists including Pablo Picasso, Amedeo Modigliani, and Constantin Brâncuși. Although primarily known as a sculptor, Zadkine also worked extensively in drawing, lithography, and woodcut. Zadkine’s sculpture is characterised by fragmented forms, rhythmic carving, and a synthesis of Cubist structure with expressive human imagery. He frequently explored mythological, musical, and spiritual themes through elongated and faceted figures. One of his best-known public works is The Destroyed City (1951–53), created in response to the bombing of Rotterdam during the Second World War.