Processione di ossessi

Sculpted in strong relief inside a recess that is lent depth by the play of shadow and light, the figures appear to bristle in febrile animation. An excited crowd moves downwards from the cross at the top, from which the procession starts. The mob advances in a complex interplay of gestures and postures in which the people supporting prostrate figures stand out. The group at the centre is rendered with a particular plastic and emotional emphasis that emerges clearly.
Certain elements of the sculpture are reminiscent of Auguste Rodin’s The Gates of Hell – which also depicts a crowd in feverish movement – and which Martini may have seen during a trip to Paris in 1912. The work, in fire clay, was sculpted at the height of Martini’s career and clearly portrays his emotional world. It also reveals his skill in modelling the material he knew so well and his most ingenious formal solutions.