The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 18, 2024

Male Torso

Male Torso

1917
(Romanian, 1876–1957)
France, 20th century
brass
with base: 63.8 x 30.5 x 19.1 cm (25 1/8 x 12 x 7 1/2 in.)
Hinman B. Hurlbut Collection 1937.3205
© Succession Brancusi - All rights reserved (ARS)
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Brancusi studied under Auguste Rodin but left after a few months, commenting: "Nothing can grow under big trees."

Description

Hoping to reveal the "true sense of things," Brancusi mused, "What can sculpture do without?" This sculpture reduces the human form to a timeless, universal essence. The smooth, highly polished brass surface was unusual at a time when most metal sculptures were cast in dull bronze. Not only does the reflective surface unify the parts into one continuous form, but it also dematerializes the sculpture's mass, transforming the figure into a spiritual lightness. Brancusi made three versions of this sculpture: a wood version (Philadelphia Museum of Art) and two in brass (this museum and the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden).
  • (Joseph Brummer Gallery)
  • The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 338 archive.org
    Cleveland Museum of Art, Edward B. Henning. Paths of Abstract Art. Cleveland, OH: H.N. Abrams, 1960. Reproduced: fig. 2, p. 5; mentioned: pp. 5,19
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 197 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 197 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 246 archive.org
    Henning, Edward B. Creativity in Art and Science, 1860-1960. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Published by the Cleveland Museum of Art in cooperation with Indiana University Press, 1987. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 125, no. 33
    Hultén, Pontus, Alexandre Istrati, Natalia Dumitresco, and Jeanne Bouniort. Constantin Brancusi. Paris, France: Flammarion, 1995. Reproduced: p. 16; Mentioned: p. 17
    Flynn, Tom. The Body in Three Dimensions. New York, NY: Harry N. Abrams, Inc, 1998. Reproduced: p. 136; Mentioned: p. 137
    Nielsen, Anne Marie. Tæt på en torso: Belvedere-torsoen som kunstværk og forbillede. København, Denmark: Ny Carlsberg glyptotek, 2001. Reproduced: p. 91, fig. 24
    Baselitz, Georg, Wolfgang Brückle, Auguste Rodin, and Andreas Schalhorn. Von Rodin bis Baselitz: der Torso in der Skulptur der Moderne ; [Katalogbuch zur Ausstellung "Von Rodin bis Baselitz - Der Torso in der Skulptur der Moderne" in der Staatsgalerie Stuttgart vom 7. April bis 19. August 2001]. Ostfildern-Ruit, Germany: Hatje Cantz, 2001. Reproduced: p. 40
    Varnedoe, Kirk. Pictures of Nothing: Abstract Art Since Pollock. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2006. Reproduced: p. 200, fig. 5, 16
    Adams, Laurie. The Making and Meaning of Art. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2006. N70 .A33 2006 Reproduced: p. 253, fig. 13.9
    Etschmann, Walter, and Robert Hahne. Kammerlohr: Themen der Kunst : Design. München, Germany: Oldenbourg, 2008. Reproduced: p. 5
    Cleveland Museum of Art. The CMA Companion: A Guide to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2014. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 298-299
    Biro, Yaëlle, Christine E. Brennan, and Christel H. Force. The Brummer Galleries, Paris and New York: Defining Taste from Antiquities to the Avant-Garde. Leiden ; Boston : Brill, 2023. Mentioned: p. 485; reproduced: p. 486, fig. c.2
  • Brancusi. Centre national d'art et de culture Georges Pompidou, Paris cedex O4, France (organizer) (March 27-July 1, 2024).
    Monet to Dalí: Modern Masters from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 21, 2007-January 13, 2008).
    Creativity in Art and Science, 1860-1960. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 16-November 8, 1987).
    Paths of Abstract Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (October 5-November 13, 1960).
    Primitive to Contemporary Sculpture. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 6-October 31, 1956).
    Rouault: Retrospective Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (January 28-March 15, 1953).
    The Silver Jubilee Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 23-September 28, 1941).
    Sculpture of Our Time. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 5-December 5, 1937).
  • {{cite web|title=Male Torso|url=false|author=Constantin Brancusi|year=1917|access-date=18 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1937.3205