Robert Metzkes

The terracotta sculpture shows a young girl sitting on a box-like, brown and grey striped plinth. Resting her right forearm on the plinth, her legs crossed, she leans back serenely. Resting her head on her shoulder, she looks cheerful, almost mischievous - but lost in thought. Her clothing, a skirt with light green, blue and brown stripes and a short-sleeved shirt with blue stripes and light green diamonds edged in brown, reinforces her posture and facial expressions. The diamond pattern is reminiscent of the classic costume of the Arlecchino or Harlequin, a character from the "Commedia dell'Arte". In the visual arts, the diamond costume is also sometimes applied to the depiction of the Arlecchino's female counterpart, the Colombina or Columbine. In the "Commedia dell'Arte", both figures embody the comic characters characterised by wit and intelligence. And so Metzke's "Jenny, high-spirited" combines different levels: the contemporary portrait, a preference for the enigmatic and an interest in literary and art-historical tradition.
Among the pigments Metzkes used for his engobes, green colours are rather rare. The sculptor prefers shades that are close to the natural colours of the clay masses, such as ochre, red, orange, brown, grey and white. The light green colour of the sculpture's clothing is reminiscent of the light green of the awakening spring, which is associated with adolescence and youth. The body movement and expression of the sculpture bear witness to this: "Jenny, high-spirited"!