Constantin Brâncuși Socrates 1922

  • MoMA, Floor 5, 500

Carved directly into oak, the large head, with cut-out eyes and mouth agape, is balanced atop the neck and shoulders, which are slender but nonetheless able to support the mass above. Brancusi said of Socrates, “Nothing escapes the great thinker. He knows all, he sees all, he hears all. His eyes are in his ears, his ears are in his eyes.” This work not only reveals Brancusi’s admiration for the Greek philosopher but also alludes to his friendship with composer Erik Satie, whose opera Socrate had been performed in Paris in 1920. In fact, Brancusi addressed Satie, ten years his senior, as Socrates, and Satie called him Plato. Socrates was the first wooden sculpture by Brancusi acquired by MoMA; Alfred H. Barr, Jr., the Museum’s founding director, doggedly pursued it for years before it entered the collection.

Gallery label from Constantin Brancusi Sculpture, 2018
Medium
Oak 43 3/4 x 11 3/8 x 14 1/2" (111 x 28.8 x 36.8 cm), on oak footing 7 1/2 x 9 3/4 x 10 5/8" (18.8 x 24.6 x 27 cm), overall 51 1/4" (130 cm) high. Limestone cylinder, 11 7/8" (30.2 cm) high
Dimensions
43 3/4 × 11 3/8 × 14 1/2" (111.1 × 28.9 × 36.8 cm) Other: 7 × 9 3/4 × 10 5/8" (17.8 × 24.8 × 27 cm) Other: 50 3/4" (128.9 cm) Other (including base weight): 370.2 lb. (167.9 kg)
Credit
Mrs. Simon Guggenheim Fund
Object number
187.1956
Copyright
© Succession Brancusi - All rights reserved (ARS) 2018
Department
Painting and Sculpture

Installation views

We have identified these works in the following photos from our exhibition history.
How we identified these works

In 2018–19, MoMA collaborated with Google Arts & Culture Lab on a project using machine learning to identify artworks in installation photos. That project has concluded, and works are now being identified by MoMA staff.

If you notice an error, please contact us at [email protected].

Licensing

If you would like to reproduce an image of a work of art in MoMA’s collection, or an image of a MoMA publication or archival material (including installation views, checklists, and press releases), please contact Art Resource (publication in North America) or Scala Archives (publication in all other geographic locations).

All requests to license audio or video footage produced by MoMA should be addressed to Scala Archives at [email protected]. Motion picture film stills or motion picture footage from films in MoMA’s Film Collection cannot be licensed by MoMA/Scala. For licensing motion picture film footage it is advised to apply directly to the copyright holders. For access to motion picture film stills please contact the Film Study Center. More information is also available about the film collection and the Circulating Film and Video Library.

If you would like to reproduce text from a MoMA publication, please email [email protected]. If you would like to publish text from MoMA’s archival materials, please fill out this permission form and send to [email protected].

Feedback

This record is a work in progress. If you have additional information or spotted an error, please send feedback to [email protected].