Gymnast Throwing a Sphere ('The Bowler')
second quarter 17th century
Medium
fruitwood, possibly pear
Dimensions
height (figure and integral base): 30.2 cm (11 7/8 in.) width: 13.5 cm (5 5/16 in.) length: 24 cm (9 7/16 in.)
Classification
Sculpture
Department
CSD
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Robert H. Smith/Robert H. Smith Collection
Accession Number
2022.181.73
Art Historical Context
Leonhard Kern’s Gymnast Throwing a Sphere captures a dynamic moment of athletic motion in a compact fruitwood sculpture from the second quarter of the seventeenth century. Standing just over 30 centimeters tall, the figure leans forward with arm extended, as if releasing a sphere in mid-action. The work’s lively pose and balanced proportions demonstrate Kern’s skill at conveying energy and balance within a small format. Carved from a single piece of fruitwood, possibly pear, the sculpture highlights the fine grain and warm tone that allowed seventeenth-century artists to achieve intricate det...
About the Artist
Leonhard Kern · 1588–1662
Leonhard Kern (1588–1662), born in Forchtenberg as the fourth son of stonemason Michael Kern the Elder, emerged from a family of masons steeped in architectural sculpture. After attending the Gymnasium in Öhringen, he apprenticed from 1603 to 1609 with his older brother, the sculptor Michael Kern (1580–1649), in Würzburg, mastering stone carving in the family workshop. In 1609, Kern embarked on fo...