Sydney Harpley RA (1927-1992)
“Girl on a Swing” (1978)
Signed and numbered 1/6, bronze on a slate base, 180cm high

Literature: "Royal Academy Illustrated", Lonodn, 1978, p. 61

Exhibited: Royal Academy, Summer Exhibition, London,1978, no 981, won the Visitor's Prize

Born in London in 1927, Sydney Harpley was a British sculptor known for his depictions of the solitary female form. Following National Service, he studied sculpture at Hammersmith School of Art from 1950-1953, before furthering his studies at the Royal College of Art under sculptor John Skeaping until 1956. During this time, he exhibited in the Young Contemporaries and the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy, the beginning of his long career exhibiting nationally and internationally. He was made a Royal Academician in 1981.

Since his early days at art college, it was the female form which intrigued Harpley the most as a sculptor, heavily influenced by Edgar Degas. Throughout his career he returned again and again to the solitary female, be it in the guise of a dancer, an acrobat or a girl on a swing. His bronzes can be found in many collections worldwide.