Edgar Degas is known as one of the founders of Impressionism and is famous for his paintings, sculptures, prints and drawings, and particularly for his fascination with motion.
The Figures in Motion collection on display at MGM belongs to the M.T. Abraham Foundation for the Visual Arts, a non-profit art institution whose aim is to promote public appreciation for Russian and European Modernism, Impressionism, and Modern Art. Before coming to Macau, the collection was previously on display at the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.
“This is the first time this collection has come to Asia and Macau is the first step,” said Israeli businessman and president of the M.T. Abraham Foundation Amir Gross Kabiri, when CLOSER spoke with him shortly after the official opening.
The exhibition is paired with interactive elements including guides to walk guests through the story of the art and opportunities for fun photos.
“This is a tailor-made exhibition at the request of MGM, for a public who doesn’t know Degas’ work. It’s a very didactic and educational exhibition,” notes Dalit L. Durst, the curator of the exhibition. “We hope that the public will come and appreciate the pieces. We want to give everyone the opportunity to feel like they are part of the exhibition,”
Arguably the most famous piece is Little Dancer Aged Fourteen. Originally made from wax, it was first displayed at the 1881 Impressionist exhibition in Paris and was instantly controversial.
“Degas was an innovator, and the first to use ready-made material. With the Dancer he used real human hair, a silk ribbon, a real tutu and ballet shoes and a real corsage. Nobody dared do that before,” explains Ms Durst.
The Little Dancer was in fact the only sculpture the Degas ever exhibited. The rest of the works in this collection are bronzes cast posthumously from the wax originals discovered in his studio after his death.
The subject of posthumous bronze casts is itself a controversial one in the Art world, with art lovers and critics alike arguing about what constitutes original work by an artist. But it is not a topic that Kabiri shies away from.
“Explaining that they are posthumous can make it complicated, and more challenging to market,” he admits. “The subject of posthumous bronzes can be quite confusing for the public so it was very important for us to explain this matter to visitors”.
Notwithstanding this issue, the collection is certainly impressive, both in the number of pieces, scope of the work and of course the beauty of the sculptures themselves.
“The more involved you get inside the story of the bronzes, the more passionately you feel about them. We did really extensive research into this collection. It has a very important and special place in my heart,” notes Kabiri.
Explaining the importance of Degas’ work, the curator adds: “He was fascinated by human and animal locomotion as you can see from the horses, dancers and the bathing women. And something that many people don’t know is that with Bathing Women he was one of the first artists to look at women from the back. He also insisted with his models to do some acrobatic poses because he wanted to take them from certain specific angles that had not been done before.”
The pieces were originally collected by Mansur Tamir Abraham, a native of Aden, Yemen when it was occupied by the British. An avid art collector, he passed away in 1999 at the age of 86, and in 2004 his children and grandchildren formed his collections into the M.T. Abraham Foundation.
“It was my grandfather who started the collection, so I have a feeling of responsibility and commitment. I had to educate myself and the more I learnt about it, the more I fell in love with it,” says Kabiri.
“I received something and now I want to give back; the purpose of the Foundation is to give back. We want to expand our exposure to Asia. We want people to be educated, to understand Degas’ work, what the artist meant exactly, and the concept of posthumous bronzes.”
A native of Israel, Kabiri also acknowledges the significance of bringing the collection to Macau, China. Israel was the first country to recognize the legitimacy of the People’s Republic of China, and next year will be the 25th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
“These two cultures of China and the Jewish people both have histories that go back thousands of years. Both nationalities have made huge historical contributions to the world, and today in technology and innovation. Beyond economics and technology, cultural activities can keep these ties close,” says Kabiri.
Dalit L. Durst adds: “In the city of Harbin there was once an important Jewish community. Several synagogues still exist today and this is a symbol of the ancient relations that exist between the Jewish and Chinese people.”
