Constantin Brâncuși(1876 — 1957)
Constantin Brâncuși
France, Roumanie
5 min read
A Romanian sculptor based in Paris, Constantin Brâncuși is one of the fathers of modern sculpture. By refining forms down to their essence, he paved the way for abstraction and revolutionized the art of the 20th century.
Frequently asked questions
Famous Quotes
« Simplicity is not an end in art, but one arrives at simplicity in spite of oneself, by drawing closer to the real meaning of things.»
« It is not things that are difficult to make, but getting ourselves into the state to make them.»
Key Facts
- Born in 1876 in Hobița, a rural farming region of Romania
- Arrived in Paris in 1904 after traveling partly on foot
- Refused in 1907 to work in Rodin's studio: “Nothing grows in the shade of great trees”
- Created several versions of The Kiss from 1907 onward and of Bird in Space from 1923 onward
- Died in 1957 in Paris; he bequeathed his studio to the French State (reconstructed near the Centre Pompidou)
Works & Achievements
Two figures reduced to an almost geometric block; a sharp break with Rodin's realism and a manifesto for direct carving.
A pared-down portrait with large eyes and an oval face, made in several versions, an emblem of Brâncuși's stylization.
An ovoid head laid horizontally, a search for the pure form of the egg, the matrix for many later works.
A streamlined form in polished bronze that suggests flight; at the heart of the customs trial that recognized abstract art.
A major element of the Târgu Jiu ensemble, a vertical monument to fallen soldiers that seems to soar without limit.
Together with the Endless Column, they form the monumental ensemble at Târgu Jiu, a symbolic journey of mourning and memory.
Anecdotes
When the sculptor Auguste Rodin offered Brâncuși a position working in his studio as a carver, the young Romanian refused, saying: “Nothing grows in the shade of great trees.” He preferred to find his own path rather than imitate the master.
In 1904, at the age of 28, Brâncuși left Romania for Paris, covering much of the journey on foot, crossing Europe with very little money. This formative voyage carried him all the way to the capital of modern art.
In 1926, one of his sculptures, “Bird in Space,” was held up at the American customs: the agents refused to see it as a work of art and wanted to tax it as an industrial metal object. The trial that followed, won by Brâncuși in 1928, led to the official recognition of abstract art in the United States.
Brâncuși lived and worked in his Paris studio as if it were a sanctuary: he constantly rearranged his sculptures, photographed his own works, and regarded the arrangement of the whole as a creation in its own right. Upon his death, he bequeathed his entire studio to the French state.
For the town of Târgu Jiu in Romania, Brâncuși designed a memorial to the soldiers who died during the First World War, including the famous “Endless Column,” nearly 30 metres tall, which seems to want to connect the earth to the sky.
Primary Sources
Nothing grows in the shade of great trees.
The work is judged original and decorative, recognized as a work of modern art and not as a mere manufactured object subject to customs duties.
Simplicity is not an end in art, but one arrives at simplicity in spite of oneself as one approaches the real meaning of things.
Key Places
Brâncuși's birthplace, in a rural region whose folk art and woodworking would leave a lasting mark on his work.
Where he received his artistic training in Romania before leaving for the West.
His studio in the Montparnasse district, where he lived and worked for decades; today reconstructed near the Centre Pompidou.
The town where Brâncuși created his monumental ensemble commemorating the Romanian soldiers of the First World War.
Where Brâncuși is buried following his death in 1957.
