Bird in Space
Encyclopedia
Bird in Space is a series of sculptures by Constantin Brâncuşi
, a Romania
n sculptor. The original work was created in 1923. It was sold in 2005 for $27.5 million, at the time a record for a sculpture sold in an auction.
The original title in Romanian is "Pasărea în văzduh."
In the Bird in Space works, Brâncuşi concentrated not on the physical attributes of the bird but on its movement. The bird's wings and feathers are eliminated, the swell of the body is elongated, and the head and beak are reduced to a slanted oval plane.
Seven of the sculptures in the series are made of marble
, while the other nine were cast in bronze
. The first and best known of the series is housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
in New York City
, while two bronze casts (1928 and c.1941) reside in that city's Museum of Modern Art
. Two versions of the sculpture, one bronze (1924) and one marble (1923–1924), are housed in the Philadelphia Museum of Art
. A 1926 bronze is on display at the Seattle Art Museum
. Two more bronze casts (1925–1926 and 1927) are on display at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
and a 1931 bronze cast is housed at the Norton Simon Museum of Art in Pasadena, California. Another bronze of unknown casting date resides in the Peggy Guggenheim Collection
in Venice, Italy, and the National Gallery of Australia
in Canberra owns two marbles, both c.1931-1936, one white and one black.
In 1926-27, Bird in Space was the cause of a court battle due to the piece being taxed by U.S. Customs. In October 1926 Bird in Space, along with 19 other Brâncuşi sculptures, arrived in New York harbor aboard the steamship Paris. While works of art are not subject to custom duties, the customs officials refused to believe that the tall, thin piece of polished bronze was art and so imposed the tariff for manufactured metal objects, 40% of the sale price or about $230 (over $2800 in 2010 U.S. dollars). Marcel Duchamp
(who accompanied the sculptures from Europe), American photographer Edward Steichen
(who was to take possession of Bird in Space after exhibition), and Brâncuşi himself were indignant; the sculptures were set to appear at the Brummer Gallery in New York City and then the Arts Club in Chicago. Under pressure from the press and artists, U.S. customs agreed to rethink their classification of the items, but until then released the sculptures on bond under "Kitchen Utensils and Hospital Supplies." However, customs appraiser F. J. H. Kracke eventually confirmed the initial classification of items and said that they were subject to duty. Kracke told the New York Evening Post that "several men, high in the art world were asked to express their opinions for the Government.... One of them told us, 'If that's art, hereafter I'm a bricklayer.' Another said, 'Dots and dashes are as artistic as Brâncuşi's work.' In general, it was their opinion that Brâncuşi left too much to the imagination." The next month Steichen filed an appeal to the U.S. Customs' decision.
Under the 1922 Tariff Act, for Bird in Space to count as duty-free it must be an original work of art, with no practical purpose, made by a professional sculptor. No one argued that the piece had a practical purpose, but whether or not the sculpture was art was hotly contested. The 1916 case United States v. Olivotti has established that sculptures were art only if they were carved or chiseled representations of natural objects "in their true proportions." A series of artists and art experts testified for both the defense and the prosecution about the definition of art and who decides exactly what art is.
Brâncuşi's sworn affidavit to the American Consulate explained process of creating the piece, establishing its originality:
Despite the varied opinions on what qualifies as art presented to the court, in November 1928 Judges Young and Waite found in favor of the artist. The decision drafted by Waite concluded:
This was the first court decision that accepted that non-representational sculpture could be considered art.
Constantin Brancusi
Constantin Brâncuşi was a Romanian-born sculptor who made his career in France. As a child he displayed an aptitude for carving wooden farm tools. Formal studies took him first to Bucharest, then to Munich, then to the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris...
, a Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n sculptor. The original work was created in 1923. It was sold in 2005 for $27.5 million, at the time a record for a sculpture sold in an auction.
The original title in Romanian is "Pasărea în văzduh."
In the Bird in Space works, Brâncuşi concentrated not on the physical attributes of the bird but on its movement. The bird's wings and feathers are eliminated, the swell of the body is elongated, and the head and beak are reduced to a slanted oval plane.
Seven of the sculptures in the series are made of marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
, while the other nine were cast in bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
. The first and best known of the series is housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, while two bronze casts (1928 and c.1941) reside in that city's Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
. Two versions of the sculpture, one bronze (1924) and one marble (1923–1924), are housed in the Philadelphia Museum of Art
Philadelphia Museum of Art
The Philadelphia Museum of Art is among the largest art museums in the United States. It is located at the west end of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia's Fairmount Park. The Museum was established in 1876 in conjunction with the Centennial Exposition of the same year...
. A 1926 bronze is on display at the Seattle Art Museum
Seattle Art Museum
The Seattle Art Museum is an art museum located in Seattle, Washington, USA. It maintains three major facilities: its main museum in downtown Seattle; the Seattle Asian Art Museum in Volunteer Park on Capitol Hill, and the Olympic Sculpture Park on the central Seattle waterfront, which opened on...
. Two more bronze casts (1925–1926 and 1927) are on display at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art is an art museum in Los Angeles, California. It is located on Wilshire Boulevard along Museum Row in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles, adjacent to the George C. Page Museum and La Brea Tar Pits....
and a 1931 bronze cast is housed at the Norton Simon Museum of Art in Pasadena, California. Another bronze of unknown casting date resides in the Peggy Guggenheim Collection
Peggy Guggenheim Collection
The Peggy Guggenheim Collection is an art museum on the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy. It is one of several museums of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation....
in Venice, Italy, and the National Gallery of Australia
National Gallery of Australia
The National Gallery of Australia is the national art gallery of Australia, holding more than 120,000 works of art. It was established in 1967 by the Australian government as a national public art gallery.- Establishment :...
in Canberra owns two marbles, both c.1931-1936, one white and one black.
In 1926-27, Bird in Space was the cause of a court battle due to the piece being taxed by U.S. Customs. In October 1926 Bird in Space, along with 19 other Brâncuşi sculptures, arrived in New York harbor aboard the steamship Paris. While works of art are not subject to custom duties, the customs officials refused to believe that the tall, thin piece of polished bronze was art and so imposed the tariff for manufactured metal objects, 40% of the sale price or about $230 (over $2800 in 2010 U.S. dollars). Marcel Duchamp
Marcel Duchamp
Marcel Duchamp was a French artist whose work is most often associated with the Dadaist and Surrealist movements. Considered by some to be one of the most important artists of the 20th century, Duchamp's output influenced the development of post-World War I Western art...
(who accompanied the sculptures from Europe), American photographer Edward Steichen
Edward Steichen
Edward J. Steichen was an American photographer, painter, and art gallery and museum curator. He was the most frequently featured photographer in Alfred Stieglitz' groundbreaking magazine Camera Work during its run from 1903 to 1917. Steichen also contributed the logo design and a custom typeface...
(who was to take possession of Bird in Space after exhibition), and Brâncuşi himself were indignant; the sculptures were set to appear at the Brummer Gallery in New York City and then the Arts Club in Chicago. Under pressure from the press and artists, U.S. customs agreed to rethink their classification of the items, but until then released the sculptures on bond under "Kitchen Utensils and Hospital Supplies." However, customs appraiser F. J. H. Kracke eventually confirmed the initial classification of items and said that they were subject to duty. Kracke told the New York Evening Post that "several men, high in the art world were asked to express their opinions for the Government.... One of them told us, 'If that's art, hereafter I'm a bricklayer.' Another said, 'Dots and dashes are as artistic as Brâncuşi's work.' In general, it was their opinion that Brâncuşi left too much to the imagination." The next month Steichen filed an appeal to the U.S. Customs' decision.
Under the 1922 Tariff Act, for Bird in Space to count as duty-free it must be an original work of art, with no practical purpose, made by a professional sculptor. No one argued that the piece had a practical purpose, but whether or not the sculpture was art was hotly contested. The 1916 case United States v. Olivotti has established that sculptures were art only if they were carved or chiseled representations of natural objects "in their true proportions." A series of artists and art experts testified for both the defense and the prosecution about the definition of art and who decides exactly what art is.
Brâncuşi's sworn affidavit to the American Consulate explained process of creating the piece, establishing its originality:
- I conceived it to be created in bronze and I made a plaster model of it. This I gave to the founder, together with the formula for the bronze alloy and other necessary indications. When the roughcast was delivered to me, I had to stop up the air holes and the core hole, to correct the various defects, and to polish the bronze with files and very fine emery. All this I did myself, by hand; this artistic finishing takes a very long time and is equivalent to beginning the whole work over again. I did not allow anybody else to do any of this finishing work, as the subject of the bronze was my own special creation and nobody but myself could have carried it out to my satisfaction.
Despite the varied opinions on what qualifies as art presented to the court, in November 1928 Judges Young and Waite found in favor of the artist. The decision drafted by Waite concluded:
- The object now under consideration . . . is beautiful and symmetrical in outline, and while some difficulty might be encountered in associating it with a bird, it is nevertheless pleasing to look at and highly ornamental, and as we hold under the evidence that it is the original production of a professional sculptor and is in fact a piece of sculpture and a work of art according to the authorities above referred to, we sustain the protest and find that it is entitled to free entry.
This was the first court decision that accepted that non-representational sculpture could be considered art.
External links
- View of the 1923 marble at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
- View of the 1928 bronze on display at the Museum of Modern Art
- View of the c.1941 bronze not on display at the Museum of Modern Art
- View of the 1924 bronze at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
- View of the 1923-24 marble at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
- View of the 1925-26 bronze at the LA County Museum of Art
- View of the 1927 bronze at the LA County Museum of Art
- View of the 1931 bronze at the Norton Museum of Art
- View of the 1932-40 bronze in the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice, Italy
- View of the c.1931-36 marbles at the National Gallery of Australia
- BBC Radio program about the Brancusi Trial