Beckett, bikes, and the Biennale: The remarkable story of Hilary Heron, the trailblazing sculptor and model compared to Eileen Gray

She travelled around post-war Europe on a motorbike and lived with Samuel Beckett in Paris

Hilary Heron varnishing Crazy Jane III (1958) at IELA 1958. Image courtesy of Estate of Hilary Heron

Marianne Heron

Once in a blue moon, a ­photograph encapsulates a particular moment – ­leaving the story behind it suspended in time. The iconic picture of a sailor kissing World War II goodbye in Times Square in 1945 is one of them.

But my own favourite is a shot of an ­elegant young woman, poised as she appears to put the finishing touches to a giant metal sculpture. The image is enigmatic: the glamorous figure with high heels, a fall of Rita Hayworth hair and a fashionable Dior-­style New Look skirt is dwarfed by a six-foot-six sculpture in welded sheet ­metal, fabricated through hard, dirty work.