“I employ no other line than the curve, which possesses freshness and force,” Nadelman declared. Man in the Open Air is composed of a succession of curves—from the droop of the figure’s bow to the arabesque tracing his body from armpit to toe. While the posture is indebted to classical Greek sculpture, the details of dress bear the influence of American folk art, of which Nadelman had an impressive collection.
Gallery label from Lincoln Kirstein’s Modern, March 17 – June 15, 2019.