Constantin
Brancusi
Mademoiselle Pogany | 
Gallery H
French Paintings and Sculpture
Brancusi's sculptures in Gallery H baffled critics more than any other
three-dimensional works in the show. Especially enigmatic were his
Sleeping Muse and
Mademoiselle de Pologany (left), which was compared to "a
hardboiled egg balanced on a cube of sugar" (Brown, Story 139). As
with
many other works in the show, critics only evaluated Brancusi's work on
its adherence to organic form.
One writer, chosing to review Brancusi's sculptures out of numerous
other possibilities, simply stated that his work was too comical for
commentary.
Brancusi was not the only sculptor to be lambasted by the press. Wilhelm Lehmbruck's Kneeling Woman was compared
to a praying mantis by Theodore Roosevelt in his "Layman's Guide to an
Art Exhibition" and Alexander
Archipenko was
scolded for his forms that were "completely out of proportion." However, even those who critized
these artists most
fiercely were also able to see a
certain charm in them. |
