Gudmar Olovson

‘Eve Révoltée’ (Rebellious Eve) was sculpted in plaster in 1973–74 and the subject later formed part of the group of sculptures entitled ‘La Chute’ (The Fall) which Gudmar Olovson created in 1980. In their book, Harald Friberg and Patrice Dubois write of the group of sculptures: ‘This signifies a revolt against the interpretation of the fall in the Old Testament. In the Greek Apollonian ideal, the notion of sin did not exist. In Gudmar’s interpretation, Eve revolts against the idea of holding back, of restraint, an attitude that has been forced upon her, and she takes the innocent Adam with her. Gudmar has also created a separate sculpture, featuring a female figure alone, entitled Eve revoltée (Rebellious Eve)’ (Friberg p. 88).

‘Rebellious Eve’ was first cast in bronze in the early 1980s as Olovson sought to highlight Eve’s particular battle and rebellion before he completed ‘The Fall’. The bronze in the auction is signed ‘Gudmar’, as the sculptor signed all his works since the 1970s. He consideredthat his full name ‘Gudmar Olovson’ was too complicated for a French audience and took up too much space on the piece.

As a subject, ‘Rebellious Eve’ is one of Olovson’s better known, exhibited in monumental format at Salon des Artistes Français at the Grand Palais in Paris in 1974. The monumental group of sculptures ‘The Fall’ (height 220 cm) with ‘Rebellious Eve’ as the central figure was unveiled in autumn 2019 in Gudmar Olovson’ honour in the ‘Garden of Love’ sculpture park at Château de Cheverny in the French Loire Valley, side by side with five other monumental works in bronze by him.