Sculpting Identity: Motherhood, the Search for Self, and Raphaël’s Genesis Series
Litovchenko, Marina
Litovchenko, Marina
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Abstract
Antonietta Raphaël was a Lithuanian artist of Jewish origin whose sculptural work developed in the context of political and social life in fascist Italy. Motherhood became the central theme of Raphaël’s sculptural practice, constituting a keystone that interlaced her personal experiences, her social roles as a mother and artist, and her philosophical reflections. This thesis considers the theme of motherhood with regard to the development of Raphaël’s artistic language and the thematic evolution of her works, from intimate portraits of daughters and protective mothers to abstract images embodying the universal role of a female body as the beginning of the world. This research interprets the artist’s sculptures through the existing contextual framework while also offering some innovations. Thus, the series of sculptures on motherhood are grouped thematically and divided into chronological stages. Raphaël’s series of works from the pre-war period is interpreted in the context of European and Italian sculptural development, emigration, racial discrimination, and the position of women in a patriarchal interwar society. Furthermore, analyzing her post-war sculptures highlights a previously unstudied yet potentially significant factor: the responses of contemporary critics and art historians, which also could have influenced the artist’s thematic preferences in her late work. Raphaël’s sculptures became an expression of her personal history and, most importantly, a way of reconsidering global historical processes from a female point of view. This thesis contributes to research on the development of the theme of motherhood by emphasizing the importance of evaluating these works within both their thematic and material evolution, and their context.
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Master of Arts in Art History -- John Cabot University, Spring 2025.
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2025
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Antonietta Raphaël Mafai, 1895-1975
Citation
Litovchenko, Marina. "Sculpting Identity: Motherhood, the Search for Self, and Raphaël’s Genesis Series". Master's Thesis, John Cabot University, Rome, Italy. 2025.