Introduction
Constantin Brâncuși (Romanian: [konstanˈtin brɨŋˈkuʃʲ]; February 19, 1876 – March 16, 1957) was a Romanian sculptor, painter and photographer who made his career in France. Considered a pioneer of modernism, one of the most influential sculptors of the 20th-century, Brâncuși is called the patriarch of modern sculpture. As a child he displayed an aptitude for carving wooden farm tools. Formal studies took him first to Bucharest, then to Munich, then to the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris from 1905 to 1907. His art emphasizes clean geometrical lines that balance forms inherent in his materials with the symbolic allusions of representational art. Brâncuși sought inspiration in non-European cultures as a source of primitive exoticism, as did Paul Gauguin, Pablo Picasso, André Derain and others. But other influences emerge from Romanian folk art traceable through Byzantine and Dionysian traditions.
Wikidata
Q153048
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Introduction
Born 21 February 1876; died 16 March 1957. Brancusi was trained as a sculptor in Romania before moving to Paris in 1904. There he studied at the Ecole des Beaux Arts and exhibited at the Salon d'Automne. In 1905 Brancusi was working intensively in photography as a means of documenting his sculptures, and was helped and advised by the surrealist artist Man Ray. Brancusi quickly became accepted as a member of the Paris avant-garde, as his sculptures departed from the 19th century Western trend toward naturalism and eroticism, and were based instead on non-Western and so-called 'primitive' sculpture. In 1914 Alfred Stieglitz exhibited Brancusi's sculptures at his Photo-Secession gallery in New York, earning Brancusi an international reputation. His sculptures from this period were of two distinct types: elegant, abstract marble or bronze forms, such as the 'bird' sculptures based on a Romanian legend, and rougher carvings made of wood, like his series of 'endless columns'. Brancusi was also known for paying special attention to the bases on which his sculptures were displayed, believing that the pedestal was part of the sculpture itself. He is often referred to as one of the most important sculptors of the 20th century.
Nationalities
Romanian, French, undetermined
Gender
Male
Roles
Artist, Genre artist, Painter, Photographer, Sculptor
Names
Constantin Brancusi, Constantin Brâncuşi, Constantin Brincusi, Constantin Brîncuși
ULAN
500016157
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Information from Getty’s Union List of Artist Names ® (ULAN), made available under the ODC Attribution License