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6 Couple, 1945 Wood relief and cloth 29 1 / 8 x 35 1 / 8 in, 74 x 89 cm 22 1 / 8 x 28 in, 56 x 71 cm (relief ) Provenance Galerie du Perron, Geneva World House Galleries, New York Brook Street Gallery, London Toninelli Arte Moderna, Rome Private Collection, Switzerland Exhibitions Zurich, Galerie des Eaux-Vives, Sophie Taüber-Arp et Hans Arp, 1945, no.2 Geneva, Galerie du Perron, Hommage à Jean Arp, 1962, no.24 London, Brook Street Gallery, Arp, 1964 Paris, Galerie Artcurial, L'aventure Surréaliste autour d'André Breton, 1986, no.7 Literature Stuttgart, Bernd Rau, Hans Arp, Die Reliefs, Œuvre-Katalog, 1981, p.171, no.353 (illus.) Florence, Filippo Buratti, Una Raccolta Privata d'Arte Moderna, 1988, p.115 (illus. in colour) JEAN ARP 1886-1966 Jean Arp was a pivotal forerunner in the debate between abstraction and figuration during the early 20 th century, developing a poetic vocabulary that gently fluctuated between the organic and geometric. Fascinated by the essential forces of the natural world, Max Ernst wrote, 'Arp's hypnotic language takes us back to a lost paradise, to cosmic secrets, and teaches us to understand the language of the universe'. The elegant biomorphic forms of Couple (1945) denote these harmonious laws of nature, which Arp saw as innately connected to the visual arts. Crucially however, Arp's yearning to return to nature was tainted by the destructive forces of the First World War. Arp's unique, satirical interpretation of German Romanticism within this context of European conflict was expressed through his involvement with the Zurich Dada movement. Couple marks a tumultuous period in the artist's career as the Second World War came to an end and his beloved wife Sophie Taeuber-Arp died. Stricken with grief, Arp was incapable of producing sculpture, expressing his sorrow principally through poetry and reliefs including this particular work.