Wedding Rings
Peter Lipman-Wulf was born in 1905 in Germany, a Christian born to a family with Jewish heritage. He was chosen as the State Academy of Fine Arts in Berlin’s Master Stone Carver, but was forced to leave his position and flee to France after Hitler came to power. In 1937, he was awarded the gold medal at the Exposition Mondiale in Paris, but in 1939-1940, he was interned with many other artists and intellectuals. In 1942, he was able to escape to Switzerland with his Swiss wife and daughter. He emigrated to the United States in 1947, where he made his home in New York City until relocating to Long Island, in the mid-1970s. He died on September 26, 1993, in Europe, while attending several openings of his exhibits in France. The sculpture Wedding Rings was first sculpted from Brazilian rosewood in 1953. It was exhibited under the name Embrace, then as Rings. Eventually, Lipman-Wulf’s then-wife, Muriel, had the idea to call it Wedding Rings, since the artist’s poverty had prevented the couple from buying wedding rings at the time. Thus renamed and exhibited in 1958, the piece received much attention. Shortly thereafter, a photo of the statue appeared in a Sunday New York Times Magazine article in the wedding section, and the piece instantly became much sought-after. The timeless sculpture’s popularity has been ever-growing since.
297V 8"
298VMB 16.5"
299VMB 12.25"
Degas Rose
Even when not performing, this delicate dancer appears in fluid motion, blending the fierce pride of a ballerina with sharply defined muscles and graceful control. Rose is an adaptation from Degas' painting Danseuses: Rose et Vert (1894)
309MC 8"
Hannula Mother & Child
Although an expert in many mediums, Walter A. Hannula favors direct carving in stone. His forms are strongly abstract in style but do not deny the natural shapes from which they evolve, nor the emotions which motivated them. His radical concentration on the essence of a concept never winds up with a dehumanized construction. "Mother and Child" was carved in sandstone in 1963. The artist considers this as the definitive execution after two preliminary versions which were widely exhibited and acclaimed.
328W 8.5"
Age of Bronze
The Age of Bronze is one of Rodin's great masterpieces. It conveys seriousness and emotional depth, and symbolizes "one who is passing from the unconsciousness of primitive man into the age of understanding and love."
334B 20"
The Kiss
This work by Rodin is one of the world's most recognized and appreciated artistic depictions of physical love.
336AW 11.5"
Thinker Bookends
The Thinker, Rodin's most celebrated work, was conceived as part of his monumental Gates of Hell. This immense bronze ornamental gate was inspired by Dante's Divine Comedy. The Thinker sits at the summit of the Gates and represents the poet meditating on his creation below. This reproduction was made from the heroic size bronze original, now part of the collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art.
339B 9"
The Cathedral
A beautiful depiction of the intersection of man's physicality and spirituality. Original is in bronze and is housed in the Rodin Museum-Philadelphia Museum of Art.
515B 13"
The Thinker
Rodin's most celebrated work, conceived as part of his monumental Gates of Hell, inspired by Dante's Divine Comedy. This reproduction was made from the heroic size bronze original in the collection of the Baltimore Museum of Art.
338B 11"
704B 6"
Eve
According to Walker Art Center curators, "The graceful, athletic Italian woman he (Rodin) used as his model for 'Eve,' the mother of all humanity, added an unexpected naturalism to the sculpture, as she was pregnant."
731B 18"
Degas Dancer
Posed as only a true dancer could, Degas' Petite Danseuse de Quatorze Ans (Little Dancer, Aged Fourteen) stands as one of the most celebrated and recognized sculptures of modern times. This reproduction is inspired by the original work in the Baltimore Museum of Art.
307MC 13.5"
754MC 8"