The Mountain 1925

Aristide Maillol made this sculpture, *The Mountain*, using bronze. The first thing that strikes me about this sculpture is its solid presence and monumentality. I can just imagine Maillol, working away at this piece, building up form after form. There's something so satisfying about the way the figure reclines with such confidence and ease; almost like she is totally at home in her own skin. I think of painters like Cezanne and Matisse, who were his contemporaries; Maillol shared their interest in form and volume. But, unlike them, he did not use paint to depict the three-dimensional form; instead, Maillol worked in the round, in the solid, to bring volume into being. She reminds me a little of one of those bathers of Cezanne. Each artist builds on the discoveries of those who came before them. As viewers we bring our own experiences to bear on the work, and, so, the conversation continues.