Atalanta (sculpture)
-
Marble sculpture, 1909, Manchester Art Gallery -
Bronze sculpture, 1929, Chelsea Embankment Gardens
Atalanta is a statue by the British sculptor Francis Derwent Wood. It shows a naked woman standing in a contrapposto position, glancing to her left, with her left hand by her side and right hand raised to her shoulder. The subject is Atalanta, a virgin huntress from Greek mythology; she may be preparing for the foot race she used as an obstacle to prevent suitors securing a marriage.
There are three main versions: a plaster version exhibited at the
The bronze statue in London received a Grade II listing in 1969. The original casting was stolen in 1991 and replaced by a replica. Nearby are David Wynne's Boy with a Dolphin and Edward Bainbridge Copnall 1971 statue of David, a copy of the sculpture by Wood atop the Machine Gun Corps Memorial.
References
- Francis Derwent Wood Memorial, Embankment Gardens, National Heritage List for England, Historic England
- Atalanta, Statue, Chelsea Embankment, Public Monuments and Sculpture Association
- Full-length statue of Atalanta by Francis Derwent Wood, ArtFund
- Sculptures from Academy architecture, 1904–1908. A collection of all the sculptures published in vols. 25–34 of Academy Architecture, p. 111.
