The sculpture “Frau mit Katze” originated in 1910 shortly after the arrival of Alexander Archipenko in Paris in 1908. In its block-like coherence, it reflects not only the Cubist sensibility for form, but also Archipenko’s interest in Aztec sculpture, which he was able to see in Paris. Already in this early work, it becomes perceptible how Archipenko strived for a new vocabulary of form in order to find a new understanding of the relationship of the sculpture with the room. He only carved into the marble block to the extent necessary to make the figures of the woman and the cat distinguishable from each other. This resulted more in a kind of relief than in a fully round sculpture – an entirely new concept that was obviously influenced by ideas of Cubism, and with which Brancusi had also occupied himself a few years prior.
