Mid-20th Century Sculptures

Created in 1953, ceramic Picador A.R. 200 is a round plate of white earthenware clay with oxidized paraffin decoration (brown, green, white) in a stanniferous enamel bath...

Artist: Alan Siegel, American (1938 - ) Title: The Throne Year: 1967 Medium: Enamel On Laminated Wood, signed on bottom Size: 40 x 23.5 x 20 in. (101.6 x 59.69 x 50.8 cm)

Panther sniffing by Georges GUYOT (1885-1972) Sculpture in bronze with a nuanced greenish black patina signed on the base " Guyot " cast by "Susse Frs Edts Paris" (with the foundry ...

Pichet Têtes, by Picasso, Pitcher, 1950's, Edition, Black and white, Design Pichet Têtes Ed. 500 pcs 1956 White earthenware, decoration with oxidized par...

This piece is an O.P. square plaque by Pablo Picasso, done from December 1968 to January 1969. It is made with red earthenware clay, engobe ground and engraving enhanced with oxides...

Nickel Plated 24 Element Puzzle Sculpture, 1968-1969, realized by Miguel Berrocal. Signature and number engraved. Edition of 9500 pieces.  Ref. Catalogo General/Obras Recientes,197...

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) CHOUETTE (A.R. 602) stamped, marked and numbered 'Edition Picasso / Madoura Plein Feu / Edition Picasso / 240/350 / Madoura' (underneath) white earthenware ...

PABLO PICASSO (1881-1973) Vase deux anses hautes (A. R. 213) Terre de faïence vase, 1953, from the edition of 400, inscribed 'D'Après Picasso / Edition Picasso', partially glazed a...

Bronze sculpture by Latin American sculptor Raúl Valdivieso (Chilean, 1931-1993). Valdivieso is known for his reinterpretation of the classic organic forms and human figures. Raúl Valdiveso was born September 9, 1931 in Santiago, Chile. In 1952 he began his studies at the School of Fine Arts at the University of Chile. There he took to sculpture and studied under professors like Marta Colvin...

Untitled, 1967 Donald Judd From Ten From Leo Castelli Folded stainless steel multiple Signed in black felt-tip pen and numbered from the edition 186 of 200 on a paper label affix...

Created in 1953, this Madoura big turned vase of white earthenware clay with decoration in engobes and paraffin (red, black), knife engraved is numbered from the edition of 75. This Picasso ceramic vase is stamped with the 'MADOURA PLEIN FEU' and 'EMPREINTE ORIGINALE DE PICASSO' pottery stamps on the bottom. A spectacular work to witness in person, Pablo Picasso Gros oiseau Picasso...

Margaret VIII, flax, sisal and wool, 57" x 39", 1977. This Mid-Century Modern abstract woven tapestry was done by Postwar and Contemporary Polish textile...

This monumental wood sculpture by Leroy Setziol (1915–2005) is a rare and significant early commission, created in 1963 for the National Bank of Portland, Oregon. Measuring an impres...

A large & impressive abstract figurative bronze sculpture, by the Pacific Northwest sculptor Frederic F. Littman (1907–1979), circa 1960. This large bronze by Hungarian-American scul...

Ary Bitter (1883 Marseille - 1973 Paris), Girl with Kid, around 1930. Green patinated bronze with cast plinth loosely mounted on a white-veined dark green marble base. Dimensions of the plinth: 5 cm (height) x 80 cm (length) x 24 (width), dimensions of the bronze 28 cm (height) x 72 cm (length) x 18 cm (width). Weight of the bronze 18.2 kg, total weight 39.2 kg. Signed “Ary Bitter.” on the plinth and stamped “L N Paris J L” by the foundry Les Neveux de Jacques Lehmann...

SALE ONE WEEK ONLY "El Tren" is a whimsical and playful rendition of a train. It is beautifully glazed in various colors. This particular ceramic was from the collection of Jane and Richard Knight’s Estate. Jane Knight was a famous fiber and textile artist. Richard was a photographer who worked for Eliel Saarinen and Alexander Girard. The Knights and Girard became close friends and it was Girard who gifted “Santa Cruz De Las Huertas Jalisco” to the Knights. Alexander Girard left his personal collection to the Museum of International Folk Art, Santa Fe, NM. The Girards eventually amassed a collection of more than 106,000 objects from across the globe. Their 1978 gift of this collection to the Museum of International Folk art quintupled the size of their collection and prompted the construction of a new wing, which opened in 1982 and houses a mere 10% of the Girard Collection in the permanent exhibition Multiple Visions: A Common Bond, which was designed by Alexander Girard himself. This collection includes numerous multiples and is notable for its great breadth, including traditional arts, popular arts, and paper ephemera. “I believe we should preserve this evidence of the past, not as a pattern for sentimental imitation,” Girard once said, “but as nourishment for the creative spirit of the present.” Indeed, folk art was an important inspiration for Girard’s design work. The renowned Candelario Medrano...

This mid-20th-century abstract biomorphic sculpture by American artist Eduardo Chavez (1917–1995) is a striking example of organic modernist design. Expertly carved from likely cherr...

Rendered in bronze, this bas-relief portrait of the 16th president of the United States is from a limited run of only two editions. The wall-mounted artwork is signed in the metal ve...

This is a great sculpture with real gravitas and elegance. A great conception in terms of the forms and planes. Can be a star piece in a room - stone and surface are very attractive! Active primarily in the mid to late 20th century, Leo De Beer...

ITZHAK SANKOWSKY "MODERNIST FACE" WOOD, SIGNED ROMANIAN-AMERICAN, C.1940 24.5 INCHES Itzhak Sankowsky was born in 1908 in Romania. He lived and was active in Philadelphia, Penn...

Mon Levinson (1926-2014). The Edge V, 1965. Plexiglass, acetate and paper. 24 x 24 x 3 inches. Minor scuffing on surface of plexiglass. Original gallery label affixed en verso. Biog...

IBRAM LASSAW (Russian-American, 1913-2003), Sculptural pendant Gold plated bronze Signed verso Measurements: 2-7/8''h, 2-1/4''w. Ibram Lassaw was born in Alexandria, Egypt, of Russian Jewish émigré parents. After briefly living in Marseille, France, Naples, Italy Tunis, Malta, and Constantinople, Turkey his family settled in Brooklyn, New York, in 1921.His family settled in Brooklyn, New York. He became a US citizen in 1928. Ibram Lassaw, one of America's first abstract sculptors, was best known for his open-space welded sculptures of bronze, silver, copper and steel. Drawing from Surrealism, Constructivism, and Cubism, Lassaw pioneered an innovative welding technique that allowed him to create dynamic, intricate, and expressive works in three dimensions. As a result, he was a key force in shaping New York School sculpture.He first studied sculpture in 1926 at the Clay Club and later at the Beaux-Arts Institute of Design in New York. He made abstract paintings and drawings influenced by Kandinsky, Sophie Taeuber Arp, and other artists. He also attended the City College of New York. Lassaw’s encounter with avant-garde art in the International Exhibition of Modern Art (1926), organized by the Société Anonyme at the Brooklyn Museum, made a powerful impression on him. In the early 1930s he explored new materials and notions of open-space sculpture. The ideas of László Moholy-Nagy and Buckminster Fuller were important to him, and he knew the work of Julio González, Pablo Picasso, and the Russian Constructivists. After experimenting with plaster, rubber and wire, Lassaw began working with steel, which became a frequent medium for the artist, along with other metals. His work reflects the influence of Surrealist artists such as Alberto Giacometti and Joan Miro as well as American Modernist Alexander Calder.A pioneer of abstract sculpture in the United States, in 1936 Lassaw was a founding member of the organization American Abstract Artists. Between 1933 and 1942 he worked for various federal arts projects: the Public Works of Art Project, Civil Works Authority, and WPA, the Works Progress Administration Federal Art Project. In 1938 he produced his first welded work. He served with the U.S. Army, where he learned direct welding techniques. During the 1940s he experimented with cage constructions and with acrylic plastics, adding color to his sculptures by applying dye directly to their surfaces. In 1949 Lassaw was a founder of the Club, an informal discussion group of avant-garde artists that had developed from gatherings at his studio, on Eighth Street. During the mid-1930s, Lassaw worked briefly for the Public Works of Art Project cleaning sculptural monuments around New York City. He subsequently joined the WPA as a teacher and sculptor until he was drafted into the army in 1942. Lassaw's contribution to the advancement of sculptural abstraction went beyond mere formal innovation; his promotion of modernist styles during the 1930s did much to insure the growth of abstract art in the United States. He was one of the founding members of the American Abstract Artists group, and served as president of the American Abstract Artists organization from 1946 to 1949. In 1951, Samuel Kootz invited Lassaw to join his gallery in New York. He also had a summer gallery in Provincetown, MA. Lassaw had been summering in Provincetown since 1944, and in 1951 rented an apartment next door to the Kootz Gallery. Among the artists in the Kootz Gallery were Jean Arp, William Baziotes, Georges Braque, Jean Dubuffet, Herbert Ferber, Arshile Gorky, Adolph Gottlieb, David Hare, Hans Hofmann, Fernand Leger, Georges Mathieu, Joan Miró, Robert Motherwell, Pablo Picasso, Pierre Soulages, and Maurice de Vlaminck. Lassaw is a sculptor who was a part of the New York School of Abstract expressionism during the 1940s and 1950s. Jackson Pollock, Lee Krasner, James Brooks, Willem de Kooning, and several other artists like Lassaw spent summers on the Southern Shore of Long Island. Lassaw spent summers on Long Island from 1955 until he moved there permanently in 1963. SELECT EXHIBITIONS 1961 International Exhibition of Modern Jewelry 1890–1961, organized by the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths in association with the Victoria and Albert Museum, London 1967 Exhibition of Jewelry by Painters and Sculptors, organized for circulation by MoMA 1973 Jewelry...

Mother and Child, with a base by Baltasar LOBO (1910-1993) A bronze group with a dark brownish green patina Signed on the base " Lobo " Cast by " Susse Fondeur Paris " (with the fou...

Antique American modernist mixed media sculpture painting by Duayne Hatchett (1925 - 2015) . Mixed media metal sculpture . Signed on verso.

Mahout washing his elephant by Roger GODCHAUX (1878-1958) A very rare sculpture in bronze with a nuanced dark brown patina Signed on the base "Roger Godchaux" Cast by "Susse Frs Edt...

Superbly handcrafted pair of Mid-Century-Modern wooden wall art sculpture panels. The artworks feature dimensional female and male faces or m...

Miriam Sommerburg (American female artist, born Germany, Hamburg, 1900–1980 New York) Modernist Wood Carved Sculpture, Carving depictin...

GILBERT LEDWARD, RA, PRBS (1888-1960) Tennis, Golf, Shooting, Ice-Skating, Dreaming – Proposed Design for Decorative Frieze in the Italian Drawing Room at Eltham Palace, commissioned by Stephen Courtauld Signed and dated July 9th 1933 Watercolour and pencil 12.5 by 49.5 cm., 5 by 19 ½ in. (frame size 36 by 67 cm., 14 ¼ by 26 ¼ in.) Exhibited: The artist’s daughter; London, The Fine Art Society, A Centenary Tribute, Feb 1988, no. 43. Gilbert Ledward was born in London. He was educated at St Mark’s College, Chelsea. In 1905 he entered the Royal College of Art to study sculpture under Edouard Lanteri and in 1910 he entered the Royal Academy Schools. In 1913 he won the Prix de Rome for sculpture, the Royal Academy’s travelling award and gold medal, which allowed him to travel in Italy until the outbreak of the Wold War I. During the war he served as a lieutenant in the Royal Garrison Artillery and was appointed as an official war artist in 1918. Following the war he was largely occupied as a sculptor of war memorials including the Guards Division memorial in St James’s Park and the Household Division’s memorial in Horse Guards Parade. In 1934, supported by Eric Gill and Edwin Lutyens, he established a company called Sculptured Memorials and Headstones, which promoted better design of memorials in English churchyards. His war memorials after World War II include one in Westminster Abbey to the Submarine Service, Commandos and Airborne Forces. Ledward was Professor of Sculpture at the Royal College of Art (1927-1929) and in 1937 was elected at Royal Academician. He became President of the Royal Society of British Sculptors and a trustee of the Royal Academy. The present work is a design for an intended decorative frieze for the Italian Drawing Room of Eltham Palace. In 1935 the remains of the medieval royal palace of Eltham was rescued from decay by Stephen and Virginia Courtald who built an ultra modern Art Deco house to adjoin the existing Great Hall. They employed the architects John Seeley and Paul Edward Paget and the fashionable Mayfair interior designer the Marchese Peter Malacrida to design the strikingly glamorous 1930s interiors of the new house. The dramatic entrance hall was created by the Swedish designer Rolf Engstromer...

Hand Forged Iron Candelabra Holocaust Memorial Judaic Menorah Sculpture David Palombo was an Israeli sculptor and painter. He was born in Turkey and immigrated to the Land of Isra...

Feminine Nude Bronze with black patina Signed on Base 31 inches Paris Listed in Major Art books Iconic pose of both arms pressed close to the body with ...

Jean Cocteau ( 1889 -1963 ) Vé : (& Astrology ) ( Blue variant ) . 1958 . 4éme variante : terre incrustée blanche et bleue Size : 7 cm . Signed underneath . Astrology : Pendentif ...

San Francisco-based folk artist Tim Weldon, fresh off a showing at Scottsdale’s annual Celebration of Fine Art, is a man in touch with his lovable inner child. He declares himself a ...

Allen Jones (1937) Chest (1968) Sculpture. Silkscreen print on fiberglass published by Xartcollection 14 3/5 × 10 1/5 × 4 7/10 in 37 × 26 × 12 cm An iconic example of Jones's early w...

Golf (Wall Plaque) Polychromed ceramic, c. 1930-1 Signed with the artist's initials: VS recto Very rare, only a few produced prior to the closure of Cowan Pottery Format: Round ceramic plate, 11 1/4 inches Designed by the artist while working for Cowan Pottery in 1930. One of Cowan's clients, an interior designer, requested plates decorated with different outdoor activities. Others in the series included "Swimming," "Tennis," "Polo," and "The Hunt." According to Henry Adams, the number of examples created was very limited due to the closing of Cowan Pottery in 1931. Very rare Condition: Good, with the usual craquelure of the glazes used. Note: Industrial design democratizes high style, and Mr. Schreckengost was widely considered among the most democratic industrial designers. He made, quite literally, the stuff of life — things found routinely in homes, backyards and garages in this country and around the world. He designed bicycles for Sears and everyday china for American Limoges...

Pablo Picasso A.R. 142 Ice Pitcher 1952 12.6” x 21.6” Pitcher Edition of 100 White earthenware clay, decoration in oxides, knife engraved on white enamel Ramie 142 is a Madoura ceramic that one rarely sees come on the market. The photo you see here is the actual piece that you will receive. Most sellers online post using stock photos that don’t necessarily match exactly to the piece you receive. This particular piece is pristine: there are no nicks, bruises or scratches of any kind. Be careful when buying from others – the pieces sometimes have nicks or scratches. The Certificate of Authenticity comes with this piece. We have sold over 3300 pieces with all positive reviews. We are located in the USA. When you buy from a foreign seller on 1stdibs, you have to consider the problems of getting the piece through Customs. There are often delays and considerable fees to pay in order to import the item. When purchasing from us, we ship the same day and you receive it via FedEx the next day, no problems or hassles. When you purchase from an auction house, you pay a buyer’s premium of anywhere from 23% to 28% over the “hammer price”. So when you “win” an auction for $20,000, the actual price paid is more like $25,000. By contrast, when purchasing from us, the price agreed to is the price paid by the buyer, no hidden fees. When you purchase from an auction house, you pay the packing and shipping fees, which are usually exorbitant. By contrast, when purchasing from us, the price includes packing and shipping. When you purchase from an auction house, the sale is final. If you receive the piece and are not 100% satisfied with it, there is nothing you can do about it. You are stuck with it. By contrast, when purchasing from us, the buyer can determine if they want to keep it. If not, the buyer returns to piece to us for full refund, and we pay the shipping both ways! The prices of Picasso Madoura Ceramics have been on fire lately (no pun intended). The major auction houses – Sotheby’s, Christie’s and Phillips – have now been regularly holding Picasso Madoura Ceramic auctions...

Stunning original panel made of 9 handmade fibreglass relief sculptures from the artist's own home. Each sculpture is unique, with beautiful rust and copper tones, and several are signed by the artist. This very large, striking piece has a great Brutalist and Modernist feel. It is particularly notable as an example of Hitchin’s mastery of finishing techniques in simulating aged metal. The relief sculptures were visible outside of Ron’s house and became a Hackney landmark. They were carefully removed by the artist's estate after Ron passed away. Year: unknown (Ron was active from the mid 1960s to the early 2000s) Colour: Rust and copper tones Signature: 5 of the relief sculptures bear the artist's trademark initials “RH” Framing: The sculptures have been carefully mounted on a cotton covered board with a walnut wood trim and a hidden subrame on the reverse for ease of hanging. Authenticity: This piece was purchased directly from the Artist's Estate and comes with a certificate of authenticity signed by the sole executor of the Ron Hitchins...

Robert Cook’s Splash sculpture draws inspiration from the iconic photograph of a drop of milk creating a circle and splash in a pool of milk. This fleeting moment of suspended motion sparked Cook’s exploration of how to capture such dynamic energy in a static form. Robert Cook was a great American sculptor and his works are in many museums and his iconic Dinoseras piece commands a spot on the street of New York at 51st Street. Important to note with this work that it is unique and there are no other casts. Cook sculpted in wax and when he cast this destroyed the wax and there was no mould. Very few sculptors work in this manner and it speaks to a very pure and altruistic form of sculpture. If perhaps he had been more commercially minded he would have done large editions but instead he valued singularity as in nature. In Splash, Cook freezes a moment of kinetic energy, capturing the elegant tension between impact and expansion. The sculpture embodies both grace and chaos, with a fluidity that suggests movement at the very instant it’s frozen in time. Cook’s mastery of his medium allows this dynamic moment to be immortalized in bronze, creating a powerful and emotional resonance that transcends the physical form, making Splash both a formal and philosophical exploration of time, space, and motion. Signed: R Cook...

Yayoi Kusama MoMa Skateboard Deck: This Kusama skateboard deck features Kusama's Dots Obsession imagery and makes for standout Kusama wall art that hangs with ease. Published by MoMa...

Herbert Haseltine Poodles: Nora and Sheila, 1944, cast 1945 Signed and dated on base Bronze with green patina 11 inches high x 17 inches wide x 6 inc...

Bronze, 1967. Height 59" (149.9 cm) width max 15" (38 cm). Signed on base "R Cook." This unique large sculpture was made using the lost wax process. “ ...

Numbered and limited to 8 copies Artwork signed Authenticity: Sold with certificate of Authenticity Invoice from the gallery Sculpture: bronze, metal, bronze patina Display: The sc...

PABLO PICASSO (1881-1973) Picador (A. R. 160) Terre de faïence plate, 1952, from the edition of 500, incised 'Edition Picasso', partially glazed and painted, with the Edition Pica...

Deaccessioned from the Spertus Museum in Chicago Hand signed by artist in wood carving Chaim Goldberg -- born in the Polish shtetl of Kazimierz Dolny Chaim Goldberg has worked in ne...

Tony Rosenthal, Attributed to, American (1914 - 2009) - Bicycle, Medium: Acrylic on Metal Assemblage, Size: 31 x 36 x 6 in. (78.74 x 91.44 x 15.24 cm)

1960s Brutalist sculpture by Texas artist Dr. Sam Jagoda. This beautiful abstract work has a plant-like form that also has bird and insect qualities. Perfect for indoors or outdoors....

Stamped, inscribed, and numbered below: Madoura plein feu; Edition Picasso; 48/100; Madoura White earthenware, partially colored and glazed Alain Ramié, Picasso: Catalogue de l'Œuv...

Paul Maxwell Rare Sand Cast Bronze & Wood Brutalist Totem Sculpture (1967, Commissioned) A striking and rare example of Paul Maxwell’s early sculptural work, this monumental totem wa...

Lohman studied at John Herron Art Institute, and Cranbrook and Yale for graduate work. Assisted Carl Milles at Cranbrook Academy before becoming Director of Fine Arts there from 1947...

PABLO PICASSO (Spanish, 1881-1973) Petit visage barbu (A.R. 557) Verso impressed "Madoura Plein Feu" and "Empreinte Originale de Picasso" Hand-numbered "J139A 9/100" Size 17.2 X 17...

Picasso Quatre Poissons Polychromes (Four Polychrome Fishes), 1947 is a wondrous mixture of color and charm. In the center of the dish are three fish, e...

Pair of playful Murano glass elephants. Dark nearly black amethyst glass with lots of gold. Circa 1950's. Possibly by Barbini. # rare not signed large paris provenance...

Brutalist abstract sculpture in steel and aluminum by renowned Israeli sculptor Bert Schwartz titled "Prometheus and Pandora". The sculpture was exhibited at the Brooklyn museum in N...

A group of four Native North American carved wood and painted effigy figures, Hopi Katsina or Kachina dolls paddling their canoe. Four wonderfully playful, brightly coloured and hig...

Georges Braque (French, 1882-1963) Antiboree Gold and Enamel Brooch, 1963 18k gold textured brooch designed by Georges Braque, a rare 18ct gold textured brooch from 1963, a bird flyi...

Pablo Picasso A.R. 520 Fluffy-Haired Woman 1964 13” x 10” Edition of 100 Red earthenware clay, printed with engobe pad Ramie 520 is a Madoura ceramic that one rarely sees come on the market. The photo you see here is the actual piece that you will receive. Most sellers online post using stock photos that don’t necessarily match exactly to the piece you receive. This particular piece is pristine: there are no nicks, bruises or scratches of any kind. Be careful when buying from others – the pieces sometimes have nicks or scratches. The Certificate of Authenticity comes with this piece. We have sold over 3300 pieces with all positive reviews. The "Fluffy-Haired Woman" (Tête de femme, Cheveux bouclés) is a ceramic plate designed by Pablo Picasso and produced at the Madoura Pottery studio. This piece is part of Picasso's extensive work in ceramics during the mid-20th century, where he explored new forms of artistic expression beyond his renowned paintings and sculptures. Here are some key details about this particular piece: Title: Tête de femme, Cheveux bouclés (Fluffy-Haired Woman) Date: 1969 Edition: Ramie 520 Medium: Ceramic plate Dimensions: Approximately 26 cm (10.2 inches) in diameter Edition Size: Limited edition, often part of a numbered series The Madoura Pottery studio in Vallauris, France, where this piece was produced, was a significant place for Picasso's ceramic work. He collaborated closely with the owners, Suzanne and Georges Ramié, to create a wide range of ceramics, including plates, vases, and pitchers, all featuring his distinctive artistic style. The "Fluffy-Haired Woman" plate is a representation of Picasso's playful and innovative approach to ceramics, combining his mastery of line and form with the unique qualities of the ceramic medium. Collectors and art enthusiasts highly value these pieces for their artistic significance and the insight they provide into Picasso's creative process. We are located in the USA. When you buy from a foreign seller on 1stdibs, you have to consider the problems of getting the piece through Customs. There are often delays and considerable fees to pay in order to import the item. When purchasing from us, we ship the same day and you receive it via FedEx the next day, no problems or hassles. When you purchase from an auction house, you pay a buyer’s premium of anywhere from 23% to 28% over the “hammer price”. So when you “win” an auction for $20,000, the actual price paid is more like $25,000. By contrast, when purchasing from us, the price agreed to is the price paid by the buyer, no hidden fees. When you purchase from an auction house, you pay the packing and shipping fees, which are usually exorbitant. By contrast, when purchasing from us, the price includes packing and shipping. When you purchase from an auction house, the sale is final. If you receive the piece and are not 100% satisfied with it, there is nothing you can do about it. You are stuck with it. By contrast, when purchasing from us, the buyer can determine if they want to keep it. If not, the buyer returns to piece to us for full refund, and we pay the shipping both ways! The prices of Picasso Madoura Ceramics have been on fire lately (no pun intended). The major auction houses – Sotheby’s, Christie’s and Phillips – have now been regularly holding Picasso Madoura Ceramic auctions...

A commanding example of Brutalist artistry, this large-scale wall-mounted sculpture by Dan Gluck is composed of intricately welded steel elements arranged in a dynamic abstract compo...

A French Art Deco dark green patinated metal figure titled "Ondine" by Pierre Le Faguays using his pseudonym Fayral. Beautifully executed and posed, she is holding a draped cloth in ...

Imagined Reality  is a sculpture realized by Vincenzo Gaetaniello, in 1960s. Cast iron, 47 x 62 x 38 cm. Label on the back with title and the artist's proof. Good conditions.  ...

Signed, numbered, and stamped on the base: Edition Picasso, 64/200; Madoura Plein Feu; Edition Picasso White earthenware, decorated with engobe, knife engraving under partially brus...

This work is hand signed. It is not dated. Murat Brierre or Murat Briere (1938–1988) was one of Haiti's principal metal sculptors. He was influenced by George Liautaud, but his work acquired its own, highly experimental style, often focusing on multi-faceted and conjoined figures, fantastically personified elements, and unborn babies visible within larger creatures. He sculpted works that reflected both Christian and Haitian Vodou themes. Murat BRIERRE was born in Mirebalais in 1938. He first worked as a builder, cabinetmaker and blacksmith before being introduced to Le Centre d’Art in 1966. After trying painting with DeWitt Peters, he realized that metal sculpture was best suited for him and studied under Georges Liautaud in order to learn the métier. He also made very beautiful linocuts. Francine Murat quickly recognized his talent and considered Brierre to be one of the best Haitian sculptors. He passed away in 1988 at the age of 50. Brierre was known for his recycling of surplus steel oil drum lids. Brierre worked as a brick mason, cabinetmaker, tile setter, and blacksmith. He was born in Mirebalais or Port-au-Prince, Haiti and was the younger of two brothers. His older brother, Edgar Brierre, was a painter and sculptor. The brother's signed their works with only their last name, creating some confusion within their professional circles about the authorship of their work. Brierre's sculptures typically ranged from three to six feet in length and reflected Christian, Haitian Vodou, and folklore themes. Brierre was also a painter, but ultimately chose to work with metal because he felt that the material was saturated with spiritual energy. It was a laborious process. The oil drum lids were hammered flat, drawn onto, then cut with a razor. The sheet was then cut with a chisel before finishing was completed with a file. By the mid1970s, Brierre's sculptures included pronounced areas of cut outs surrounding long curved lines of metal. Brierre's iron sculpture titled Chien de Mer overlays a dog head onto the body of a fish. Haiti has long celebrated a rich artistic and cultural heritage. Georges Liautaud (1899–1991) ignited the Haitian metal sculpture movement in the 1950s in Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti. A blacksmith by trade, he fashioned crosses for public cemeteries before creating more elaborate cut-metal works. Liautaud disseminated the distinctly Haitian art form to emerging artists, such as Murat Brièrre (1938–88) and the Louisjuste brothers, Sérésier, Janvier, and Joseph (1940–89). They, in turn, taught others in Croix-des-Bouquets, including Gabriel Bien-Aimé (b. 1951) and Serge Jolimeau (b. 1952), Haiti’s two leading metal sculptors working today. Discarded steel oil drums have historically served as the base material for Haitian metal artists. The drums’ lids are cut open with a chisel and hammer and a long vertical split is made along the side of the drums. The interiors are filled with dried sugarcane or grass and lit on fire to remove any grime; once cool, the drums are flattened into sheets. Designs are chalked on; pieces are then cut and sculpted using only hand tools and further enhanced by hammering, embossing, cutting holes, and bending the metal. Sculptures reflect everyday life portraits, imaginative themes, and motifs of Haitian Vodou, an African Diasporic religion. Some of the many forms that appear include angels and winged creatures, mermaids and other aquatic figures, musical bands, animals, and earthly, paradisiacal scenes. Solo exhibitions 1967 – Haitian Art Gallery, New York 1968 – Centre d'Art, Port-au-Prince, Haiti; Bradley Galleries, Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Georgetown Graphics Gallery, Washington D.C.; Menschoff Gallery, Chicago; John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Sheboygan, Wisconsin; Roko Gallery, New York 1969 – Centre d'Art, Port-au-Prince, Haiti; Showcase Gallery, Washington D.C.; Botolph Group, Boston 1970 – Centre d'Art, Port-au-Prince, Haiti 1972 – Centre d'Art, Port-au-Prince, Haiti; Roko Gallery, New York 1979 – Areta Contemporary Design, Boston Group exhibitions 1969 – Davenport Art Gallery, Iowa 1974 – Davenport Art Gallery, Iowa 1978 – Brooklyn Museum, New York (traveling) 1982 – Studio Museum in Harlem, New York 1983 – Chicago Public Library Cultural Center 1985 – Davenport Art Gallery, Iowa 1987 – Musée du Panthéon National, Port-au-Prince, Haiti 1988 – Galeries Nationales d'Exposition du Grand Palais, Paris 1989 – Museum of Art, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 2006 – Phyllis Kind Gallery in conjunction with the Outsider Art Fair, New York 2024 Ayiti Toma II: Faith, Family, and Resistance, Luhring Augustine, Tribeca, New York 2023 Haitian Metal Sculpture, SFO Museum, California, USA 2015 Celebrating African American Art, Flomenhaft Gallery, Chelsea, New York, USA An important exhibition of works by outstanding African American artists. Included were: Emma Amos, Benny Andrews, Romare Bearden, Murat Brierre, Beverly Buchanan...