The choice of marble as the medium for Tête d’étoile further amplifies its symbolic resonance. Historically associated with classical antiquity and notions of purity, marble lends the sculpture an aura of timelessness. By the 1960s, when Tête d’étoile was conceived, Arp was firmly established as a pioneer of modernist sculpture. Accolades such as the Grand Prize for Sculpture at the 1954 Venice Biennale and a retrospective at The Museum of Modern Art, New York, in 1958 underscored his artistic significance. Created near the end of his career and at

· Eduard Loeb, Paris (acquired directly from the artist in 1964)
· Brook Street Gallery, London (acquired in 1972)
· Galerie Motte, Geneva (acquired in June 1976)
· Paul Kantor Gallery, Los Angeles
· Christie's, New York, 3 November 1982, lot 76
· Sidney Janis Gallery, New York and Galerie Beyeler, Basel
(acquired jointly from the above sale)
· Galerie Beyeler, Basel
· Collection Hans and Marion König (acquired from the above in
January 1990)
· Sotheby's, London, 4 March 2025, lot 31
· Private collection, London (acquired from the above)
· Private collection, Switzerland (acquired from the above)