Video: Henry Moore’s Elbow hoisted above Leeds city centre

The bronze sculpture ‘Reclining Woman: Elbow, has been on permanent display outside Leeds Art Gallery on The Headrow, will be heading to Amsterdam.

The work, owned by the Henry Moore Foundation based in Hertfordshire and at the Henry Moore Institute neighbouring Leeds Art Gallery, is leaving the city for the first time in 30 years to go on show as part of the long-awaited reopening of the Rijksmuseum in April.

Home to works by artists including Rembrandt and Vermeer, the museum is reopening after a 10-year renovation and restoration programme.

Reclining Woman: Elbow is one of 14 key works representing 30 years of Castleford-born Moore’s outdoor sculpture which will be on show in the surrounding gardens.

The display in Amsterdam will run from Friday, June 21 to Monday, September 30,

The work was personally chosen by Moore himself to go on display on the external plinth at Leeds Art Gallery in 1982 as part of the sculpture gallery extension project.

Leeds City Council executive member for leisure Councillor Adam Ogilvie said: “It’s going to be a little strange walking past the art gallery and not seeing the Henry Moore sculpture there as it has been a permanent fixture for the last 30 years, but it is long overdue a holiday after all that time.

“It is a sign of its significance that it has been requested to go on display at the reopening of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, so we hope everyone enjoys seeing it at the exhibition and we look forward to it returning to Leeds looking better than ever later in the year.”