Alberto Giacometti The Man Pointing 1947 Man Pointing

Alberto Giacometti

The Man Pointing (1947) Man Pointing was made very rapidly for Giacometti’s first exhibition in New York. He recalled: ‘I did that piece in one night between midnight and nine the next morning. That is, I’d already done it, but I demolished it and did it all over again because the men from the foundry were coming to take it away. And when they got here, the plaster was still wet. ’ It was originally intended to be part of a larger composition, with the left arm positioned loosely around a second figure. Giacometti later abandoned the idea, and considered Man Pointing to be a complete work.

Focal Point I first noticed the long legs of the sculpture, it captured my eyes first because of how different it is from other sculptures. For me it symbolizes strength and progress.

Color The Color of the man pointing by observation varies from grey to a light shade of misty black

Space The sculpture has negative spaces between the legs and in the sides of the long arms.

Texture The texture of the sculpture is somewhat smooth and generally rough since it was an unfinished work in the beginning and was made of plaster

Symmetry The sculpture is asymmetrical but still is balanced due to the dynamics placed on the sculpture with the use of the negative spaces