Intro

I want to write in this project about Brancusi's art, together with a detailed analysis of arts from
different cultures that I consider to have a very important role in understanding the Brancusian style. I
consider that Brancusi is a model and all artists should follow his thinking. I am fascinated by how
Brancusi had the courage to present his ideas and wanted more than to be a sculptor, he wanted to bring
something new to art and he sacrificed himself for sculpting. I think that all artists should act like that
because by doing so the art will make progress. At the same time, in order to present your own
interpretation, any artist must form a base knowledge that, for the most part, comes from school and
personal research, then the rest focus on looking for an idea that fully represent you and does not
exaggerate, being based between the pillars learned from school.

Brancusi also formed the basis of his art from the Romanian and French schools, together with the
borrowing of elements from different cultures, applying the common sense that emerges from his soul
as a Romanian peasant. Applying this analysis with common sense, he came to the conclusion that in
order to reach the most natural form of art, you have to look in the roots of culture because they have
the sincerest form and the closest connection with nature. He came to the conclusion that common
sense comes from nature and from God, which once again shows the thinking of the Romanian peasant.
I also chose to write this project about Brancusi and especially about sculpture because I want to build
classical guitars in the future and I think that this analysis of sculpting in wood would help me. At the
same time, I am fascinated by Brancusi's representation of the simplicity and sincerity that he illustrates
very well in his sculptures.
I was pleasantly surprised when I start analyzing Brancusi's sculptures because I noticed this sincerity of
the Romanian peasant and also a deep quintessence that hides different moments of life lived in the
village. I believe that Brancusi tried to present in his sculptures the idea that the villagers are very
connected with nature and animals and have faith in God.
I want to make an analysis of Brancusi's art and to develop my skills in wood carving at the level where I
will be able to represent my vision. I want to analyses relief forms made by erosion or sculpted by the
wind and try to illustrate them, after I found a character which emerges from my interpretation. This
interpretation will reflect form influences that I will acquire from this project after analyzing the
sculpture from different cultures. I want to choose these cultures according to the influence I have
acquired from the analysis of Brancusi's art, respectively to apply the psychology of looking for the most
connected with nature form.

After applying this thinking, I chose to do a search in African art, Egyptian art and Prehistoric art. I want
to combine all this information and traditions from those cultures trying to find the same quintessence
as Brancusi did in his art and at the same time be able to represent my own ideas (sculpting the relief
forms with the influence from Brancusi, Prehistoric art and African art).
I want to apply Branvcusi's psychology and his way of thinking (common sense and simplicity) in finding
the quintessence of Egyptian, African culture and prehistoric art.

Bridge section

In this section I will present pictures with erosions in the stone and various forms of relief that I want to
use as inspiration for my base of my style in my sculptures. I want to use relief forms as inspiration
because I am looking for the most sincere and simple representation of nature and I consider that relief
forms are the most suitable for fulfilling my search.
This is a photo with a famous tourist destination in Romania. It is called "Babele" which translates to ‘’The
old ladies’’. Below you can see how I can use the relief forms to produce different sculptures.
 This is another example. This rock carved by the wind is called "The Sphinx". It is located in the same
place where "Babele" is located (in Romania in the Bucegi mountains). This rock looks extremely similar
to a skull if viewed from that angle.
 Here I tried to carve the shape of the relief form similar to an elephant. The shape of the relief is big
and great and I decided that the similarities of an elephant would make the viewer feel the heaviness.
I tried to combine this rock formation aspect to the previous sculpture.
As you can see, I tried to represent in my sculpture the canyon wind erosion ‘’essence’’.
Göbekli Tepe

This Neolithic site rises over a rocky limestone ridge in southeaster Turkey. The T-shaped columns
specific to the Göbekli Tepe complex are covered with representations of animals, abstract symbols and
human hands. Moreover, the pillars are arranged in circles and ovaries - each structure consists of two
large columns, arranged centrally, surrounded by smaller pillars, facing inwards.
The Göbekli Tepe Temple (Turkish: Hill of the Pitcher) was built 11-12 millennia ago, hundreds of years
earlier than the first evidence of the sedentary population of hunter-gatherers by farming and taming
wildlife. Consequently, most archaeologists believe that the temple was built by hunter-gatherers.

This impressive project, built 6,000 years earlier than Stonehenge's best-known monolithic ensemble, is
clearly a deviation from the hunter-gatherer-specific lifestyle.

Regardless of the geographical space, the temple, as a place of prayer, is a reflection of the divine world.
Its architecture, without exception, expresses the attitudes and feelings that the conscience of the
religious spirit instills in people: wisdom, love, balance, the conviction of the existence of an
indestructible connection between earth and heaven. The meaning of the word "temple" is related to
the motion of the stars. In Latin, "templum" means the sacred edifice from which the sky was observed
by the Roman augur, that is, the priest who had the gift of predicting the future and interpreting the will
of the gods, depending on the movement of the stars, flight and song of birds. Hence the expression "to
be auspicious", is a good sign (bad), in connection with a certain situation.
Similarly, the Greek correspondent "temeneos" comes from the same root "tem-", which means "to cut,
divide, delimit", and therefore designates the sacred place, dedicated to the gods, delimited by the
profane. Everywhere people have built temples, from ancient times to the present day, there is
considered to be a "center" of the world, over which the divine will is poured, whether it is the temple of
Delphi, dedicated to Apollo, the Hindu. , from Angkor, dedicated to the god Vishnu, the Borobudur
temple (Indonesia), the largest Buddhist temple in the world, the temple in Jerusalem, those in Central
and South America, etc.

All geometric shapes and all objects in a temple are loaded with symbolic meanings. The square plan of a
temple is obtained from a circle drawn around a gnomon (a hair stuck in the ground, in ancient sundials),
whose shadow determines the cardinal axes. Hindu and Buddhist temples have the horizontal structure
of the mandala (a Sanskrit term meaning "circle" and, by extension, "sphere") and used in ancient times
for meditation and prayer. The Christian or Muslim ones have a dome-shaped roof (the upper half of a
sphere), symbolizing the sky, and the rectangular or square base, an image of the earth.
 The discovery, not long ago, of the oldest temple in the world, the one at Gobleky Tepe, Turkey, proves
that there are still many aspects related to the evolution of human civilization, which bring new and new
meanings on the beginnings of this world.

The Gobleky Tepe Temple was estimated to have been built between 11,500 and 10,000 BC, during the
pre-Ceramic Neolithic period (a time when Atlantis seems to have disappeared), thus advancing
thousands of years ago, the Egyptian pyramids or other buildings that had become landmarks in the
history of culture and civilization, as we know it until now. It seems unbelievable that the temple was
built 5,000 years before the development of Sumerian civilization, which scholars consider to be the
oldest of the worlds that archaeological evidence has ever uncovered. The site is located in southeastern
Anatolia (Turkey), near the border with Syria, on a hill northwest of the city of Sanliurfa (Urfa or Ur, a
name also mentioned in the Bible, where it is believed that Saint Mandylon was found). Shroud with the
image of Jesus Christ). Urfa is also known in history as Edessa, the first Latin state in Asia Minor, located
at the foot of the Taurus Mountains, in a region where nature has been particularly generous, a true
earthly paradise. The Turkish toponym "Gobleky Tepe" means "Navel Hill", referring to the shape of the
area. Many translate this place name as "Navel of the Earth".
Archaeological research in the area began in 1963, initiated by the American archaeologist Peter Benoit,
who considers, however, that the identified traces were probably of a Byzantine cemetery. In 1994, an
elderly Kurdish pastor, Savak Yildiz, accidentally discovered an elongated stone that did not appear to be
a rock. Archaeological excavations were resumed in 1995 by the German Harald Hauptmann, together
with Adnan Misir and Eyup Bucak, archaeologists from the Urfa Museum, who quickly realized that they
were about to discover absolutely amazing remains.

The Gobleky Tepe complex consists of a series of circular and oval stone structures, located on the
slopes of the hill, arranged in four well-defined spaces, which are called "Gobekli Tepe Ziyaret" - "Ziyaret"
meaning "visit". The columns are decorated with animals - reptiles, crocodiles, foxes, lions, birds, insects
and spiders. These are made in the form of bas-reliefs. The support pillars, about five to seven meters
high, three meters wide and weighing about five tons, T-shaped, are arranged in a circle. Experts believe
that more than 200 such pillars probably supported the temple, which underscores the exceptional
ability of those who worked here to transport, place and decorate the building. On some of the pillars,
the ornaments resemble Egyptian hieroglyphs, which has led archaeologists to wonder if there has been
a pictographic writing since the 10th millennium BC. On the northern side, there is an enclosure whose
pillars are decorated with lions and tigers, and on one of them, a scene depicts a woman giving birth.
Another has mushroom-shaped hair, as do snakes, sculpted with mushroom-shaped hats, and these
details lead archaeologist Andrew Collins to say that they may be shamanic rituals involving
hallucinogenic mushrooms.

Nomadic populations probably settled in this temple, and the carved animals could be protective spirits
of the dead. It is very possible that the need for food for the builders of such buildings was the main
reason why nomadic populations "invented" agriculture. In other words, it was religion that determined
the development of agriculture and sedentary communities and not the other way around, as is usually
interpreted as the mechanism of becoming human society.
 The media did not hesitate to associate Gobekli Tepe with biblical Eden. These findings may also confirm
some Sumerian legends that agriculture, animal husbandry, and tissue were brought to the people of the
sacred mountain of Du-Ku, that is, from somewhere near this region near the Taurus Mountains.

For some unknown reason, around 8000 BC, the temple was completely covered with thousands of tons
of earth, thus creating the artificial hill at Gobekli Tepe. The burial of the temple seems to have been a
premeditated gesture to protect the building, which was a huge effort on the part of those who did so.
About that time, the climate in the area seems to have changed, the trees have been cut down, the
ground has become infertile, and people have been forced to move elsewhere. Some scholars wonder if
they did not move to where the Sumerian civilization flourished a little later.

A similar site exists 63 kilometers east of Urfa, in the Tektek Mountains, dating from 9,500 to 9,000 BC,
occupying an area even larger than the Gobekli Tepe Temple (300,000 square meters). . And who knows
how many other traces of ancestral civilizations are not yet waiting to be discovered.
Thinker of Cernavoda

A man sitting on a chair, with his head in his hands, giving the impression that he is deep in thought, a
Neolithic figurine, The Thinker from Hamangia. This small and impressive statue was discovered 64 years
ago. The statuette known today as "The Thinker from Hamangia" belongs to a population from Dobrogea
almost 8,000 years ago.

A team of archaeologists led by Dumitru Berci began digging on Sofia Hill in Cernavoda, after it was
discovered that the works on the Black Sea Danube Canal destroy the traces of some civilizations from
the beginning of history. These excavations led to the discovery of the "Thinker" in 1956 and his partner,
the "Woman". The statuette was then presented to the population in an impromptu exhibition in
Cernavoda City Hall and then went to Bucharest, thus becoming famous and known throughout the
world.

The little statue quickly became a topic of discussion. Various books have been dedicated to her, with
the exception of the era to which she belongs by the care with which she was worked and by the
multitude of symbols she transmits. Her partner, the representation of a woman sitting on her bottom,
with a seemingly relaxed and even dreamy attitude, only fueled the discussions on the symbolism of the
"Hamangia" statuette. In the year 2000, the statuette was designated to be one of the 10 artifacts that
would represent the earth's culture on this planet in the event of an encounter with an alien population.

In this photo I reproduced the statue of the Thinker from Hamangia. When I sculpted it I used a lot of
geometric shapes. As you can see in the hands, I tried to imitate the original and use the right posture of
the triangle more. I consider that in the period when this sculpture was made, the sculptors used the
essence of things (in this sculpture, the theme of thought and the unknown) and less details. And
another mistake I see is the shape of the head which is originally more rounded and the mouth is put
down on the face. I sculpted this statue trying to think like how people were thinking at the time. As I
said above I used less details and I used geometric shapes that were common at that time and the
symbol of the unknown in the way I made a few bends in the head to eye area to give an impression of
doubt. You can see this in the first photo before I glaze it.

Unfortunately, another mistakes I made was not getting enough air out of the clay before sticking it to
the other pieces of clay, and this led to the clay cracking after it burned.
At the same time, I did not respect the shape of the forearms quite well, using more of the idea of
geometric shapes.
In the future, I would make a scheme for the sculptures of this kind and divide the sculpture into
sections. After dividing the sculpture into sections, I will modulate the clay much more to get the air out
of the clay. Another thing to do is to form a "skeleton" made of steel wire for the sculpture to avoid
further destruction or separation of pieces of clay.
I chose the color for glazing closer to the color of the coals. I wanted to give the sensation of dirty and
old. At the same time, I was influenced by the colors from the cave paintings.
African Art
Introduction
African art can be regarded as foundational, being the base of human civilization. Therefore, African art
played a crucial role in developing cultural and historic landscape of the entire world. The origins of
African culture dates back to the prehistoric times, starting from representation sculptures and rock art.
The African studies reveal the earliest sculpture art that was discovered in Nigeria. These artefacts date
back to 500 BC.

The scarcity of archaeological research restrains the knowledge of antiquity of artistic forms on the
continent. At the same time, archaeological discoveries point to a wide variety of raw materials that have
contributed to time disintegration. Apart from the abundance of historic evidence, African history can be
proud of the contributions that the Egyptian civilization contributed to its artistic heritage

Purpose of the Research

Because the African art is mostly premised on representing visual culture of the continent, the main
purpose of the research consists in defining the early forms of African art, main materials used, major
influences, and the main themes explored within the established context. It is also purposeful to explore
the role of the most ancient culture on the development of new artistic forms.

Establishing the Temporal Frames of Early African Art

The first evidence pointing to the rise of African art refers to the development of Nok Culture shaping
the ancient Civilization between 500 BC – 200 AD. Discovered in 1928, the examined artwork represents
a mixed style that employed a range of iron –utilizing societies of diverse culture, undermining the claim
that Nok people were distinguished by one feature.

The archaeologists also state that the Nok Terracotta figurines originate from the small village located in
sub-Saharan region. The historic evidence proves that the refined style of this culture is represented by
the image of dignitary figurine. In the Picture 1, it is possible to see the earliest sculpture, the Terracotta
Nok Head dating back to 500 BC. Although the sculpture refers to ancient civilization developments,
evidence of much early artefacts exists.
This is of particular concern to the oldest rock images left in Namibia caves nearly 24,000-27,000 years
ago. Other than that, the expert archaeologists note that the African rock art can refer to much more
ancient times. In order to get a better idea of the historic period, it is purposeful to consider various
themes, forms, and influences represented in the rock art.

Major Themes Explored Among the Artefacts

Rock Art
The history of rock engraving and painting art is ambiguous due to the scarcity of archaeological findings.
Artworks on rock walls are quite vulnerable and, therefore, few rock paintings preserved up to our
modern times (The Metropolitan Museum of Art n. p.). Despite this, the slabs of rocks with historic
painting were found in Huns Mountains of Namibia, in the Apollo 11 Cave.
The rock stones were pained in ocher, white, and charcoal (The Metropolitan Museum of Art n. p.).
Incised stones were also discovered at the Wonderwerk Cave in the Northern Cape, in South Africa. The
findings suggest that the engravings refer to the ancient history of the continent.

As it has been briefly described about, the earliest mentioning of rock art in Africa refers to prehistoric
times. In particular, Sahara Rock Art is split into four periods – Bubalus period (8000-7000 BP), Pastoral
Period (6000-2200 BP), and Horse Period (3,200-1,200 BP), which is divided into chariot and camel sub-
periods (Saharan Rock Art n. d.).

The rock carvings of Bubalus or Archaic period lies in representing large animals, including elephants,
buffalo, giraffes, antelopes, and hippos. Many of the animals depicted on the rock surface are now
registered as extinct (See Picture 2: Engraving of an Animal). The Pastoral period is associated with
smaller representations of animals and humans that are done with white and red ochre pigments.

The depiction of human looking after cattle provides evidence on the advancement in development of
human activities (See Picture 3: Herdsman and Cattle). Greater accuracy in details demonstrates humans
with weapons, pointing to the rise of hunting activities. Horse period introduces paintings with humans
on chariots and animals (Davis 8). The main feature of this historic stage consists in representing human
figures in a bi-triangular form and appearance of horse-drawn chariots and small weapons.

Sculptures
The earliest forms of sculpture are terracotta pottery heads originating from Nock Culture. Made from
cast metal, the figurines were discovered in Nigeria, the region of the richest history of ancient sculpture
in Africa (History World n. p.). The history relates to fifth century BC to depict the first sculpture artifacts,
which developed into sophisticated forms 2500 years later, during Renaissance upheaval in nineteenth
century and cubism movement in the twentieth century.

Textile and Weights

Textile production also contributes to understanding and time frames of African art history. The oldest
textile remnants refer to Igbo-Ukwu culture found in 9th century AD whereas caves in Mali were
discovered with woolen and cotton cloths in eleventh century.

The ancient themes and mechanisms of producing textile has been preserved in modern times. Specific
attention requires the ornaments and themes depicted on clothing. In particular, the dominating
techniques involved tie and resist dyeing, direct fabric painting, and weaving. Since the ancient times,
patterns and motifs represented on clothing signify personal status and group identity of African tribes.

According to Bortolot, the textile arts were considered the markers of dominion whereas the actual
process of weaving had ceremonial and mythological meaning. In Akan mythology, for example, the
attention is given to the spider Ananse, which is regarded as the original weaver. Therefore, the weavers
had to follow specific requirements and ritual during production.
Egyptian Ancient Art as Part of African Artistic Heritage
The Egyptian civilization emerged more than 5000 years ago. It rich culture is known worldwide due to
the rich ancestry it contributed in production, mechanical engineering. Specifically, the archaeologists
and historians’ interest in pyramids was great due to the complexity of construction techniques. In fact,
the first pharaohs’ tombs were constructed approximately 3000 BC.

Djoser’s Step Pyramid was among the first buildings whereas the Great Pyramid of Khufu appeared a
century later. The most ancient pyramid has a stepped-like structure. The main value of these
architectural memorials lies in the possibility to trace the evolutional process from prehistoric graves to
the pyramids. The symbolic meaning of the mastaba tombs is that of creation and it is often regarded as
a way to heaven.

The Great Pyramid of Cheops was built on the Giza plateau. Its foundation is made of bedrock with a
limestone quarry. The construction is distinguished with great precision, although its size is impressive.
The tomb of Cheops has three chambers – the Subterranean Chamber, Queen’s Chamber, and King’s
Chamber – that are connected by the passageway system.

Although pyramids can tell about lives of Egyptian pharaohs whose burial chambers are supplied with
symbols of privilege and wealth. However, little information is known about ordinary people who directly
participated on the construction. The mystery of pyramids building is still on the current agenda.

Later Representations of Prehistoric Art in Africa

It can be stated that African art is represented through sculptures, crafts, and ceremonial masks
introduced by tribal cultures, as well as African culture developed during colonial times. African art,
therefore, is more associated with sub-Saharan art, North African art, and Egyptian heritage. For
instance, the earlier terracotta figurines are also represented in 12th-14th century. Specific attention
requires Ife (Yoruba) figurine originating from Nigeria.

The flashbacks from the ancient times were also introduced by the African architecture, which is not
represented by pyramids only. In this respect, specific attention should be given to the constructions of
Great Zimbabwe, Mande, Oualata, and Cameroon. The main characteristics of ancient architecture are
revealed through use of granite slabs, monumental stone structures dating back to 1000-520, and
massive stone masonry.

The mud architecture is introduced in Mande with parapets and buttresses. The architecture of this
region started refers to a 1700-100 B.P. The period is also known for tomb structures, minarets with
towers over the roofs. Mauritanian style of African architecture is introduced by stones that are covered
with adobe. Motifs reminded the Arabic strip and are now as arabesques in modern culture.

Conclusion
Overall, African art embraces one of the greatest achievements of humanity. In particular, sophisticated
mixture of visual culture with spiritual believes introduces the main essence of African artistic heritage.
Its technique introductions and artistic perfection testifies to the humanities’ creative ingenuity.

Religious and cultural beliefs also reproduced through artistic objects not only in figures and masks, but
also in their application in various ceremonies and rituals. While exploring the historic evidence,
including sculptures, rock paintings, figurine, statues, and masks, it is possible to explore the main
themes, activities, and other important information about African culture and history.

In particular, the rock painting point to the development of African civilization, from hunting to cattle
breeding. The painting involves predominantly depictions of various animals and humans. The sculptures
allowed the historian to define the physical appearance of people living thousands years ago. The
Egyptian civilization has also made an incredible contribution to the African artistic ancestry.
This is of particular concern to the first pyramids and the mystery of their construction. The prehistoric
arts traces its further representations in later artistic forms introduced in African culture. Such
perspectives are typical of architectural forms, clothing, ceremonies, and use of materials. Being the
cradle of the civilization, African culture is considered to be among the richest ones because of many
sub-artistic styles and influences that are still brightly represented in modern art of other cultures.
CONSTANTIN BRANCUSI

Introduction

This work involves a detailed analysis of the life and work of a great cultural personality of Romania and
the world, a sculptor with a special significance for the Romanian people, Constantin Brâncuși.
I chose this theme because Constantin Brâncuși has a special significance in Romanian culture, having
overwhelming contributions to the renewal of language and plastic vision in contemporary sculpture.

In the following chapters I will make a presentation of his works both personally and, especially,
artistically, from his debut works to the most important sculptures.
The first chapter contains an overview of his whole life, the biographical date about Brâncuși from his
birth to his death.

In the first part of the second chapter we exposed the work of Constantin Brâncuși in general with all its
meanings and sources of inspiration of the artist, following in the second part a detailed exposition of
the most important sources that gave life Brâncuși's work.

The third chapter presents Constantin Brâncuși's vision of his creation, the vision of a magical cosmos in
which he considers that spirit merges with matter and no work can be born without being animated.

The last chapter is the most complex and most important because it presents the main sculptures of
Constantin Brâncuși (Prometheus, Muse, Master, Penguins, The Kiss, Miss Pogany, Caryatida, etc.), of
which the most important work is, without a doubt , the famous ensemble from Târgu Jiu, whose history
will be presented in the second part of this chapter. However, by far the most important sculpture of the
artist is the Column of Infinity. This will be analysed in the last part of the project with all the meanings
that have been attributed to it over time as a Romanian funerary pillar, axis of the world and pillar of
light or pillar of fire.
The work ends with a brief conclusion of all those presented.

Chapter 1 Biographical data

Born on February 19, 1876, in Hobita, Gorj, Constantin Brancusi was the sixth child of Radu Nicolae
Brâncuși and Maria Brâncuși. He did the first primary class in Peștișani, then he continued the school in
Brădiceni.
As a child he learned to carve wood to make various tools and household items. In Romania, household
objects, pillars and house facades were often decorated with wooden sculptures. The style of these
ornaments will influence Brâncuşi's work. In his memoirs the artist said that his outfit and way of life
were influenced by his country of origin, respectively by: simplicity, common sense, love of nature.
 At the age of 9 he left home and supported himself,
working for 6 years as a shop boy in Craiova. All this time he continued to carve in wood; he made
himself a violin, which attracted the attention of a client of the cafe where he worked - this client helped
Brâncuşi to enter the school of Arts and Crafts in Craiova.
Bust of Vitellius (1898)

After attending the School of Arts and Crafts in Craiova (1894 - 1898) he came to Bucharest where he
graduated from the School of Fine Arts in 1902. During his studies, even in the first year, in 1898, his
work Bust of Vitellius gets "honorable mention.

Ecoseu (1900 – 1902)

For two years, between 1900 and 1902, with the help of Dr. Dimitrie Gerota, realizes Ecorșeu, a study for
the representation of the human body, a work to which a bronze medal is awarded.
The precision of the details of this work makes Ecorșeul to be used in Romanian medical schools.
Ecoseu is a statue made of plaster with a size of 177 × 52 x 32 cm.
 In 1903 he received the first order of a public
monument, the bust of the general doctor Carol Davila, which was installed at the Military Hospital in
Bucharest and represents the only public monument of Brâncuși in Bucharest. This bust was
commissioned by a council formed by his former teacher Dimitrie Gerota, to help Brâncuși pay for the
trip to Paris. The payment for the monument was divided into two installments, the first half being paid
before work began, and the second instalment after Brâncuși finished the bust.

When he finished the work, it was presented to the council, but the reception was unsatisfactory, with
various members of the council having dissenting opinions about the general's physical characteristics,
such as asking for a nose reduction, and also different opinions about the positioning of the epaulettes.
Enraged by the council's inability to understand the sculpture, Brâncuși leaves the meeting room to
everyone's surprise, without receiving the second half of the money needed to leave for France, deciding
to walk to Paris.
Bust of Carol Davila(1903)

The road from Bucharest to Paris first took him through Hobita, where he said goodbye to his mother. He
continued on his way, stopping in Vienna for a while, during which time he worked in a workshop as a
furniture decorator. In Vienna he began to visit museums with works of art inaccessible in Romania. Here
he became acquainted with the Egyptian sculptures that influenced his work later in life.

In my opinion, Egyptian art influenced Brancusi by the fact that Egyptian art has a spiritual
representation and expresses various movements and actions that show the viewer the action from the
landscape. Later Brancusi uses this technique in his sculptures, an example would be the Maiastra which
is sculpted in a position that gives the feeling that it rises and at the same time contains spiritual
elements and signs that show different details like small eyes that signify imperfections and many others
symbols that Brancusi uses in his sculptures.

Maiastra represents an elevation (taking flight), not necessarily the representation of a bird. Brancusi
used the same elements from Egyptian art, respectively to capture in his sculptures the motif of
movement and action. As an example, we can see how the bird is sculpted in a slightly diagonal post that
gives the feeling of flight and elevation.

At the same time, Brancusi took from the Egyptian culture the meaning of the symbols and merged
them with the simplicity and spirituality of God. In this sculpture we can see how the bird's eyes are
different, and they are uneven, one being in the shape of an x. It states the taking over of the symbols
and their spirituality from Egyptian art. In Egyptian art, symbols are predominant.
 Consistent with Egyptian art, Brancusi managed to combine the sincere representation of the spirit
seen from the vision of a simple and sincere villager. At the same time, I believe that his philosophy of
being ordinary and sensible to nature can be seen in his art. I think that Brancusi thought in a way as
close as possible to God's commandments and created art in a way that was as simple as possible
focusing more on the soul of the object.
Brancusi managed to think beyond ordinary thinking and managed to find his own interpretation
being influenced by the myths and traditions where he lived and the people he met.
From Vienna he left for Munich in 1904, but after six months he set off on foot through Bavaria and
Switzerland and to Langres, France. Near Lunéville, after a torrential rain in which he is caught, Brâncuși
acquires an infectious pneumonia and, in critical condition, is admitted to a nunnery. After a period of
recovery, he thinks that he no longer has the strength or the time to travel on the road to Paris, so he
travels the last part of the road by train.
In 1905 he succeeded in the entrance examination to the prestigious École Nationale Supérieure des
Beaux-Arts, where he worked in Antonin Mercié's studio until 1906, when, reaching the age limit, he left
school.

Brâncuşi started working in Rodin's workshop in 1907 but left it after only a few months. I consider
that Brancusi's art was influenced by Auguste Rodin.
 The Gate of Inferno The Kissing Gate
Both artists made the gate element and the atmosphere of unknown, Rodin making the Gate of
Inferno and Brancusi the Gate of Kiss.
This element of building tension is present in both artists. For example, in The Gate of Inferno, Rodin uses
the element of illustration, making a very detailed representation full of elements. I think Rodin used this
type of presentation because, visually, these elements create tension through agglomeration and
dramatic and suffering posture.
I think that in the Kissing Gate, Brancusi wanted to show that through love people form a very solid gate
that opens new horizons. I say this because on the sides of the gate you can see two half-circles that have
a circle around them. I think this element wants to illustrate two people who love each other and
together they form one strong circle. We can see that the two half-circles are identical, illustrating the
person's soul. Brancusi wanted to make a gate because the element of the Gate means the opening of a
new world. We can see how the symbols, which are taken from Egyptian art, are present in Brancusi's art.
In The Kissing Gate, Brancusi focused on spiritual representation. This vision of spiritual representation
can be found in the simplicity of the Romanian villagers. If you think in relation to the common sense and
simplicity of the Romanian villagers, you can understand the spiritual representation that Brancusi used
in his sculptures.

He refuses to work as a practitioner in Auguste Rodin’s workshop, uttering the words that have become
famous:
“Rien ne pousse à l’ombre des grands arbres”
(In the shade of the big trees nothing grows).

Somnul (1906)
Constantin Brâncuși exhibited for the first time at the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts and at the Salon
d'Automne in Paris in 1906. In 1907 he created the first version of the Kiss, a theme that he resumed in
various forms until 1940, culminating with the Kiss Gate part of the Monumental Ensemble from Târgu-
Jiu. In 1907 he rented a studio in Rue de Montparnasse and came into contact with the Parisian artistic
avant-garde, becoming friends with Guillaume Apollinaire, Fernand Léger, Amedeo Modigliani, Marcel
Duchamp.
Work began on the Prayer, an order for a funerary monument that will be exhibited in the "Dumbrava"
Cemetery in Buzau. In 1909 he returned for a short time to Romania and participated in the "Official
Exhibition of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture". The jury of the Exhibition, chaired by Spiru Haret,
awards the second prize to Brâncuși. The art collector Anastase Simu buys the sculpture Somnul and the
plaster bust of the painter Nicolae Dărăscu is purchased by the Ministry of Public Instruction.

In 1914, Brâncuși opened the first exhibition in the United States of America at the Photo Secession
Gallery in New York City, which caused an enormous sensation. The American collector John Quin buys
several sculptures, ensuring a material existence conducive to artistic creation. In the same year, the
Romanian Minister of Interior rejected the project of the Spiru Haret monument ordered a year before.
Brâncuși will keep the work in the workshop and will name it the Narcissus Fountain. In 1915, he began
to execute the first wooden works, including 2 Caryatids and the Prodigal Son.

In Paris, in 1919, the volume "La Roumanie en images" appeared with five reproductions after
works by Brâncuși. A year later, he participated in the exhibition of the group "La Section d'Or"
in France, in the exhibition of the group "Romanian Art" at the invitation of Camil Ressu in
Romania, in the "Dada Festival", where he signed the manifesto entitled Against Cubism, against
Dadaism. In the New Little magazine from New York, appears, in 1921, the first large-scale study
with 24 reproductions of Brâncuși's work, signed by the American poet Ezra Pound. In fact, the
sculptor would later make a famous portrait of him.
 Portrait of Ezra Pound
He took part in a protest movement against André Breton and in defense of Tristan Tzara. On November
30, 1924, he exhibited at the first international exhibition of the group "Contemporanul" in Bucharest.
Two years later, at the Wildenstein Galleries in New York, his second solo exhibition opens. Until 1940,
Brâncuși's creative activity took place in all its magnitude. His notable works from the Bird in the Air
cycle, the Ovoid cycle as well as wood carvings date from this period. At the same time, Brâncuși
participates in the most important collective sculpture exhibitions in the United States of America,
France, Switzerland, the Netherlands and England. In his workshop in Impasse Ronsin, in the heart of
Paris, Brâncuși created a world of his own, with a Romanian setting and atmosphere. The National
Museum of Modern Art in Paris (Center Pompidou) has an important number of works by Brâncuși,
bequeathed to Romania, but gladly accepted by France, along with everything in its workshop, after the
refusal of the communist government of Romania 1950s to accept Brâncuși's works after the sculptor's
death.

In Romania, in the era of socialist realism, Brâncuși was challenged as one of the representatives of
cosmopolitan bourgeois formalism. However, in December 1956, the first personal exhibition of Brâncuși
in Europe opened at the Art Museum of the Republic of Bucharest. Only in 1964 Brâncuși was
"rediscovered" in Romania as a national genius and, consequently, the monumental ensemble from
Târgu-Jiu with the endless Column (of gratitude), the Table of Silence and the Kissing Gate could be
arranged and cared for, after it had been abandoned for a quarter of a century and very close to being
torn down.

At his death, in 1957, the Romanian state refused to receive the legacy left by Brâncuși, his Parisian
workshop, considering the sculptor a representative of the decadent bourgeoisie. Brâncuși's workshop
reverted to the French state.

I consider that the place where Brancusi lived was a great influence in terms of the artist's style of
producing art. In all his works there is simplicity and common sense, I say this because his works are far
from a detailed representation and focus on the meaning and spirit of objects, based on a divine
representation that is closely related to God. Romanian traditions have had a great influence on
Brancusi's art because they all focus on simplicity and the fear of God, based on common sense. At the
same time, it can be seen how the art of Egyptian culture, which focuses mainly on spirituality, influenced
Brancusi.
At the same time, the people he become friend and the places where he studied offered Brancusi the
main ideas about sculpture and art, creating a base knowledge that allowed him to express new ways of
making art and at the same time offered him the option of expressing his own ideas and interpretations
of the spirituality of objects through his vision.
Chapter 2
The work of Constantin Brâncuşi
Constantin Brâncuşi freed the sculpture from the preponderance of the mechanical imitation of nature,
he refused the figurative representation of reality, he expected the expression of the quintessence of
things, of the dynamism of form, and he united the sensible with the spiritual. In his work, Brâncuşi
reflected the Romanian villager way of thinking. Through his villager origin, he found his deep roots in
the traditions, myths and magical function of Romanian folk art. Representative of the modern artistic
movement, Constantin Brâncuşi is the most important sculptor of the 20th century. His sculptures are
distinguished by the elegance of form and the sensitive use of materials, combining the simplicity of
Romanian folk art with the refinement of the French art current and his aspiration barrowed from
Egyptian art and Orient culture.

Brâncuşi gave our century the representation of pure form, ensuring the transition from the figurative
representation of reality, to the expression of the essence of things and revolutionized the plastic
language in a revolutionary way.

He use in his art elements such as: verticality, horizontality, weight, density and the influence given from
light and space. In all his works you can discover those elements that are often very simple to spot,
showing his peasant’s way of thinking combined with symbols and meanings hidden in the work,
representing his spiritual vision.
 However, deciphering the meaning of his work remains so enigmatic and exciting. The factors that led to
this vision, later materialized in the Brancusi plastic creations, were first separated and analyzed. They
can be grouped into three categories: the pre-Christian beliefs in Romanian folklore, always guided by
Brâncuşi, Orthodox Christianity, metaphysics in the Far East and oriental, primitive and archaic art. The
broad religiosity of the artist, proves that Brâncuşi knew how to discover their common and secret root,
where the opposites reconcile in a primordial unity. What surprises the artist, however, is the fact that
only after his departure from the country and only after the turning point of 1907, the Romanian folk
motifs begin to appear in his new art. The explanation must come from several directions. One of them
is certainly the influence of oriental metaphysics and oriental, primitive and archaic art from the Guimet,
Trocadero and Louvre museums, in the sense that they gave him the possibility to understand the
universality of some symbols that appear in Romanian folklore. But, perhaps the most important is the
fact that Brâncuşi understood, through the same mysterious process, what is related to the ineffable
human being and the particular destiny of the Romanian artist, the meaning of these archaic symbols
and implicitly the archaic symbolic thinking.

Mainly, Brâncuşi had the vision of a magical cosmos, in which matter and spirit form a unity and in
which everything, animated or not, has spirit. His artistic belief was to reproduce through his works
precisely this spirit of matter, in a (truly) visible existence. This spirit suggested it in several ways: by light
(or the impression of "fire"), by creating surfaces that look as if they "advance forever" (or rise), by
respecting ideal interior proportions for these works, or through sacred symbols.

The work of the sculptor Constantin Brâncuşi continues to arouse perplexity and raise questions, and
the innumerable interpretations of his works only deepen the mystery and the conviction that the
understanding of their real meaning is far from complete. Researchers' curiosity is stimulated especially
by the unsettling impression of the mysterious, enigmatic, unspeakable, these strange forms - especially
by the fact that they do not try to imitate anything of the surrounding reality - and the vague impression
that their decipherment could reveal a deep meaning, beyond the name it bears. The silence with which
the artist himself enveloped his work, as well as his somewhat bizarre life, nonconformist to the fashion
of the time, but at the same time marked by the precepts of ancestral traditions, increase the mystery
and urge research in-depth study of the biography of the sculptor from Gorj, on the grounds of looking
at his work as a "mirror" of his creative soul.

2.1.
The philosophy of ancestral naturalness as a creative source of Brancusi
In order to understand the "roots" of Brâncuşi's philosophy, the surest way to do it is to listen to the
artist's own words, recorded by Petre Pandrea:
"I was sent to the world as a child as a child. I didn't lose touch and I didn't take root to go crazy around
the globe. He also took advantage of my art. I saved myself as a man "; "Did the ancients say to love your
destiny? I loved myself and I never left my ancestors and their philosophy of naturalness. Aren't they the
ancestors of our destiny? ”; "Self-reconciliation is established in your soul when you look at yourself as a
ring in an endless chain of forerunners and when you do not violate the prescriptions of eternal
naturalness"; "Peasants know, from small to large, what is good and bad. The tables of values are
contained in proverbs, in customs, in the doctrine of the ancestors and in the philosophy of naturalness”.

His peasant mentality can also be deduced from the appearance of his workshop in central Paris, from
his behavior in relations with neighbors and friends. He was a typical peasant, with a brick stove (used
for both heating and cooking Romanian food) as in the houses in Oltenia, bed, table, chairs, wooden
benches and a peasant gate made of beams, all built by his hand. He was moderate in his diet, often
cooking lacto-vegetarian food without consuming alcohol (although it is known that he liked wine very
much). He was especially fond of polenta, served with sour cream and fresh cottage cheese at the round
and short table. According to P. Pandrea, the norms of friendship in Brâncuşi’s “doctrine” “are norms of
the Carpathian Stoic peasant and the Stoic intellectual European Union of the last two thousand years”,
and “The wave of humanity and the wave of cordiality flowed, daily, from the depths. He was part of
humanity. “Finally, another deeply rural aspect was the typical Aesopian manner in which he wanted to
share his wisdom. Archaic wisdom certainly came not only from his life experience but also from
Romanian proverbs and sayings. One of Brâncuși's constant and dear readings was the monumental
work Proverbs of the Romanians by Iuliu Zanne, in which P. Pandrea considers that there is “the main
underground source of his philosophy, orality and ethical behaviour in Parisian life, which differentiated
him from his friends. Bohemian by which he remained exemplary and even legendary”.

It could therefore be concluded that his norms of behavior were those of the Romanian Carpathian
village, and his vision of the world had as a fundamental and original source the very wisdom of
Romanian folklore in general and that of Gorj in particular. Brâncuși called it "the doctrine of the
ancestors" or "the philosophy of eternal naturalness". It is very important to emphasize that the
prescriptions of "eternal naturalness" have been applied both in private life and in his art. Brâncuși
would have said to P. Pandrea: "The obstruction of naturalness leads to sterility on all levels",
"Naturalness in friendship is the emulation of similar intelligences and the fraternization of comrades-in-
arms", "Naturalness in love is the passionate tendency to reach absolutely ... ” (But“ Love kills friendship
”), and “ Naturalness in sculpture is allegorical thinking, symbol, sacredness or the essential search
hidden in the material, and not the reproduction of the photograph of external appearances ”.

2.2.
Cosmic Christianity as a creative source of Brâncuşi
Brâncuşi's position towards Orthodox Christianity seems ambiguous, observing a certain reservation
towards Orthodox dogmas and in general towards Christian denominations. On the one hand, he
declares: “I do not follow the rules of my church either; and yet I go there and sing every Sunday. Every
religion claims that it expresses true doctrine, and denounces others as false. Religion is still religion
even without Christ, the Holy Spirit, heaven or hell”. Therefore, despite a seemingly paradoxical position,
it can be understood that, if Brâncuşi was dissatisfied only with the external forms of religion, he was still
attracted to a living faith in Christ.

2.3.
Oriental metaphysics as a creative source of Brâncuși

Brâncuşi's first contacts with oriental metaphysics were with his move to Paris, where he read Mrs.
Blavatski's Theosophical Book Isis unveiled, which talks about the spiritual message of a primordial
secret doctrine, from which the ideas broken by their initial context, later become the source of all
beliefs on the surface of the earth. P. Neagoe believes that this book would completely change Brâncuşi's
life and way of thinking. Moreover, the book would also influence the bill of his future art: “In
Constantine's soul, something sprouted from which he could not escape until the end of his life. This
something later sprouted in his sculptures, in the form of an egg or birds, symbols of genesis, of birth”. P.
Neagoe considers that Brâncuşi “The sacred books of the Orient gave him a new orientation in art”. From
the National Library he borrowed sacred books of the Orient which impressed him a lot because in them
he found a new explanation of the natural laws.

Brancusi's encounter with oriental metaphysics had a great impact on his vision of the meaning of
things. At the same time, Brancusi added in his search of genius the oriental metaphysics, practicing yoga
and reading books on oriental philosophy. This search made him understand himself and seek for the
spirit of things.

It is possible that Brâncuşi found in the books of oriental philosophy, at least partially, the wisdom of his
predecessors. It is also possible that, deepening his own ancestral folk traditions, out of the constant
desire to explain them, the Gorj artist actually entered the area of universality, where the deep meanings
of the great traditions meet. It should be noted, however, that P. Neagoe was the only friend of Brâncuşi
who reported that the artist practiced such a program of physical and mental exercises, taken from the
books of Oriental philosophy, and in this case Indian, because it is a program according to the teaching of
yoga. These meditation techniques were his preparation for the artistic act, as he said:
"To prepare for the act of creation is more difficult than the creation itself." "To achieve artistic
inspiration ... Meditation prepares me for art. The act of artistic creation is not difficult. That's right, it's
easier to copy nature. But for a creative, true art, the big problem is you know how to prepare for the
artistic act. This is the secret; in creation a moment of preparation is necessary”;
 These words show how oriental culture influenced him, making him look for the quintessence of
things.

From what is narrated by P. Neagoe in his biographical novel about the life and work of his friend
Constantin Brâncuşi, it can be understood that the practice of techniques derived from the books of
oriental spirituality would have given him a new orientation, not only in life but also in his art, because
they helped him to be reborn and at the same time constituted his preparation for the artistic act. It
seems that the frequent visits to the Guimet, Trocadéro and Louvre museums in Paris, where he was
attracted mainly by the collections of primitive and oriental sculptures, contributed essentially to the
fundamental change of the Romanian artist's conceptions about art. For example, the wooden
sculptures in the Trocadéro museum “suggested to him the image of primitive man, who had lived in a
permanent correspondence with nature. It was a feeling that modern man had lost. "

Chapter 3
"Spirit" and "matter" in the vision of Constantin Brâncuşi

3.1.
The spirit hidden in matter

Constantin Brâncuşi had the vision of a magical cosmos in which, as he confessed: "everything, being or
non-being, has a soul". As a more concrete example of the Romanian sculptor's actual work, I reproduce
the following representative texts of his:

“I only hit when the stone showed me what to do. I wait until the inner image is formed in the mind.
Sometimes weeks go by and the stone doesn't speak to me. I'm not looking for appearances. I try to get
as far away from reality as possible. I never copy. Any imitation of the natural surface is lifeless. I have no
preconceived notions. See, the idea must penetrate the stone and release the spirit hidden in it. I'm
looking for the same thing as you; that form, of all schools and times, which would reveal the universal
law. This law exists in our minds. I'm sure of this. We just have to look for her. I reject all non-essential
elements and make them identical to the universal law ... In fact, I am still in a constant search”.

"The bird is the symbol of flight ... and flight will take man out of the narrow confines of heavy matter.
Here, however, I struggle with two problems: I must restore in my form the unleashing of the spirit of
matter. Secondly, I have to combine all the shapes into one perfect unit. Even the opposite shapes must
merge into the final shape… As you can see, I realized the idea of floating, but I failed to make the bird
take-off”

Taking into account the fact that in Brancusi's view of the world, the spirit in the matter is considered to
be the true reality, it is explained why the Romanian artist did not agree with the classical art of
descriptive (figurative) or, more recently, the abstract that constituted fashion. Artistic of the early
twentieth century. His belief was that "Art is something other than the rendering of life: its
transfiguration." So, to summarize, in Brancusi’s artistic conception of mystical origin, the spirit of a
subject (being, thing or phenomenon), is an eternal being of cosmic essence and at the same time
represents its own idea. The key form or the almost absolute form for each subject, is the one that
summarizes the idea of that subject. This form can be reached through a process of essentialization,
continuous simplification of a subject of a certain apparent complexity. It is therefore explicable why
such an "idealistic" approach to subjects naturally led him to a nonfigurative art.
Chapter 4
The main sculptures of Brâncuşi

1. Prometheus (1911)
Brâncuşi resumes the theme from the Torture, from 1907 where the bow of the head is the only sign of
suffering. Prometheus' head is a small piece of marble, where the details of the portrait seem to have
been erased. Prometheus' head have an almost spheroidal appearance, interrupted only by the subtle
depth of his eyes, the barely perceptible lines of his nose and mouth, the shape of his ear, and the
suddenly strangled neck.
2. Muza (1912)
She is inspired like the Sleeping Muse by the portrait of Baroness Renee Irana Frachon.
This work is made of marble.
 In this work Brancusi focused on the position of the portrait. In my opinion, this way of expressing the
posture in art, is taken from Eastern culture. I say this because Eastern culture focuses on the spiritual
meaning engaged from stories and myths that are shown in the actions of the characters. Brancusi
respected this culture and combined it with the culture of the peasant thinking, which generally have as
their understanding respect, common sense and observance of God's rules. In my opinion, Brancusi took
over the spirituality from the Oriental culture and understood that every object has a soul and took from
the Romanian culture, the simplicity and common sense. An example that shows that Brancusi took
elements from Eastern culture is the fact that he started yoga and began to look for the spirit of objects.

He was reproducing the spirit of the objects in the vision of the Romanian peasant. At the same time, he
used symbols and sculpture techniques that he learned from the Romanian and French art schools.

3. Maiastra (ca. 1915–1918)

The work is also made of polished bronze, but compared to the previous version the legs are a few cm
longer. This shows how he chose to introduce elements related to size in his art. At the same time he use
symbols and postures to illustrate to the viewer different essence. For example, on the right side of the
beak the opening widens and the right eye is larger than the left. I believe that these asymmetries have
the role of animating the shapes of the bird.
This sculpture has two versions, one at the Peggy Guggenheim Foundation in Venice and one at the
Moines Art Center.
The material used in the Peggy Guggenheim Foundation from Venice version is gelatine silver print. The
material used in the Moines Art Center version is marble. The size of the sculpture is: 17.6 x 12.7 cm. (6.9
x 5 in.)
 The Moines Art Centre version The Peggy Guggenheim Foundation version

4. Penguins (1912)

This sculptureis made in white marble. Brâncuşi's penguins express a feeling of tenderness, they keep a
human sense in their tender movements, and they seem like people in a movement of closeness. At the
same time the sculpture shows the seeking of mutual support. The sculpture illustrates a sense of trust,
communion, and solidarity. Again, Brancusi use elements such as movements, size, space and his vision,
in this case, of Anatole France's book, Penguin Island.

The size of this sculpture is: 54 × 28.3 × 30.8 cm (21 1/4 × 11 1/8 × 12 1/8 in.)
5. The Kiss (1912)

In this work, Brancusi use the stone to represent the power of one that arises from care and love. This
affirms once again his use of different materials and postures to present easier the quintessence from his
vison. I believe that the arms symbolise the marriage, showing that Brancusi hides in his work symbols.
It is a symbolistic work of two lovers embracing, a theme represented in numerous pieces of art full of
erotism, from Auguste Rodin and Edvard Munch, to Gustave Moreau.

6. Miss Pogany
It is considered by critics as one of the most famous and daring portraits of the twentieth century. It
represents a new conception of the portrait. This figure of extraordinary delicacy, with eyes as huge as a
dragonfly, is at the same time a portrait and the effigy of a beauty full of mystery. The resemblance to
the photograph of the painter Margit Pogany is striking. She visited Brâncuşi's workshop in 1910 or 1911,
and after the war she settled in Australia.
7. Caryatid (1915)
Caryatids are by nature supporting figures, however he sold these two larger ones as independent
works. Brâncuşi said:
"I would not want it to be believed that these works are imitations of the ancient, nor did I think about
it, I just wanted to capitalize on these old woods that I really liked." The artist will resume the theme in
1926, creating a new version of this work that, like this one, can be admired at the Fugg Museum of
Harvard University.
This sculpture shows clear influences from African art.
8. Himera (1918)
The oak sculpture is a strange image of a creature with huge eyes. It is placed on a base that partially
resumes the theme of the oval. Along with Socrates and the spirit of the Buddha, this sculpture brings
the breaking of the closed volume, the use of the vacuum as a constitutive element of the sculptural
space and the assembly of several forms in the same sculpture, as new elements in his artistic language.

9. The Portrait of Mrs. Eugen Meyer Jr. (1920)

The subtitle of the work is "A queen who does not despise". The features of the face are completely
suppressed, and the structure of the composition is not reminiscent of a human figure. The sculpture
consists of three parts, joined by a vertical line. The upper part, a kind of cylinder curved in front,
represents the head that continues with a smaller curvature in the middle part, which would represent
the neck, and the lower part, which represents the bust, is a new cylinder.
10. Blonde black woman (1924)
The structure of this work is based on the simplicity of the ovoid shape. The sculpture is an egg resting
on the edge of a cylinder that serves as a base. The oval of the portrait has at the top applied a sphere
representing the hair tight in a bun, on one side it has applied a kind of lips formed of a sectioned
cylinder, which resembles the lower part of Eve's head and on the other side a wing in three corners.
Ionel Jianu considers that next to a sophisticated girl, this work was also inspired by the portrait of,
because she lived with a black pianist whom she took everywhere with her as a defiance of racial
prejudices ... Brancusi will return to theme in 1928, this work can be seen at the Art Institute of Chicago
and in 1933, a work that is in a private collection in Detroit.
Brancusi borrowed from African art the idea of metamorphosis and the change of objects and people
into animals and spirits. You can see the circular and rounded elements that are present in African
sculpture.

Nancy Cunard
Brancusi wants to sculpt the essence of objects and to find that spirit seen through his interpretation
that formed from the Romanian and French school together with the things that influenced and
fascinated him. This sculpture resembles a fish. I think Brancusi chose to do so because he was
influenced by African art that is based on transforming people into animals. At the same time, one can
observe the influence of Romanian simplicity.
11. Miss Pogany (1933)
It is a bronze version of the 1919 carved version at the Museum of Modern Art in Paris. About this work
Brâncuşi said “I can probably think of an even better interpretation. Who can say that a work of art is
finished? ”.
12. Seal (1936)
The sculpture, which is also called the Miracle, is made of marble with gray vines. It is a simple form, a
body rising to the ground with toil. Paul Andre said: “A seal seen by Brâncuşi is always much less and
much more than that, it is the vital momentum captured by a few lines whose sobriety conceals an
entire virtual life. You guess an aspiration in it. Not the seal. Of life.

13. The architectural complex from Târgu Jiu (1953)

It is his main work. The complex, conceived as a homage to the heroes who fell in the First World War, is
built at the proposal of the National League of Women from Gorj County, chaired by Aretia G. Tătărascu.
Initially, the project included two works: The column of endless gratitude, dedicated to the heroes who
fell in 1916 in the battles on the banks of the Jiu and the Stone Portal, which was to be the main gate of
the public garden in Târgu Jiu. A second project provided for the location of the Kiss Gate 15 meters away
from the street, but Brâncuşi decides to raise the Kiss Gate further inside the garden, in the place where
it is today.
Kissing Gate (1937)
This work represents the perfect stage of an idea that persevered in Brâncuşi since 1908, when he
carved the first version of Sărut. Here Brâncuşi synthesizes so much that the two embraced bodies take
the form of the two halves of a seed. In the gate of Târgu Jiu, known as the "Kiss Gate", the embrace of
the two bodies, as two halves of the same seed, forms the perfect shape of a circle. Through the circle,
the sun is naturally evoked, here its origin is once again betrayed in the eye of the 1925 Kiss, the symbol
of the motif.

The Table of Silence (1938)

The first variant of the Table had a diameter of 200 cm; but Brâncuşi ordered a second one, with a
diameter of 215 cm, which he placed over the first one, giving up the circular plinths that formed the
base. The table suggests the rough appearance of two overlapping millstones. The sculptor said: “The
line of the Table of Silence suggests the closed curvature of the circle that gathers, brings together and
unites. Carved in other proportions or from other materials, used as a pedestal, or for other utilitarian
purposes, this type of round table was part of the very familiar decor of Brâncuşi's workshop. ”
Endless Column (1937)
It is his main work, considered by Ionel Jianu a synthesis of all his lifelong pursuits and by Barbu Brezianu
the quintessence of Brâncuşi's work, being one of the most admirable sculptures of the century. It is an
austere and perfectly balanced sculpture. The 16 elements of the column were cast in September 1937
at the factories in Petroşani, and weigh 14,226 kg.

14. The Flying Turtle (1943)

It is his last work. The frog seems to detach itself from the ground and rise to the sky, embodying the
opposition between living and flying.

The Infinite Column

4.1 The mythical symbol of the Infinite Column

The Infinite Column is one of the terms used by Constantin Brâncuşi for the main element of his
Ensemble from Târgu-Jiu. The names of: Infinity Column, Endless Column, Endless Column, Endless Pillar,
Endless Pillar or the simplest Pillar were also recorded. Several exegetes of the Brancusi masterpiece
rightly remarked on the resemblance of the shape of the Column - which sometimes goes as far as
identity - to the shape of the porch and gate pillars of the peasant houses or of the funerary pillars from
the rural cemeteries of a still traditional Romania at the beginning of the 20th century, when Brâncuşi
began the work of renewing the sculpture in Paris. However, the Romanian archetype of the Column was
recognized more by some of Brâncuşi's exegetes. The Infinite Column is in fact a huge funerary pillar,
monumentalized in honor of the heroes of Gorj and suggestively located near the cemetery on the hill
that borders the city to the east.
 At the same time, the Column represents an archaic symbol from the geographical space now inhabited
by Romanians, found on the gate or porch pillars of old wooden houses. The theme of this stylized pillar
is fundamental in Brâncuşi's work, preoccupying the sculptor since the beginnings of his non-figurative
art. The first Columns were carved in wood in 1909, and in 1918 he also carved in wood several endless
Columns, created, presumably, in memory of the dead of the First World War that can be found in the
collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Brancusi was 39 years old when he started
this project. The projects diameters are 2.03 m x 25 cm x 24 cm.
In this way it can be explained why the sculptor felt the need to monumentalize this stylized pillar in
Târgu-Jiu. Brâncuşi's preoccupation with the theme of the Column, culminating with its
monumentalization in Târgu-Jiu, denotes the fact that for the artist this symbol had an extremely
important significance, which he wanted to share with his peers. And one of the ways he chose in this
regard was to keep a certain mystery about the precise meaning of his work, in order to arouse the
curiosity of those with a desire for truth, beauty and philosophy, who researching his works. They will
thus "twin" with him, enriching his creation through their impressions and suggestions.
The modules were made in the central workshop of Petroșani (Atelierele Centrale Petroșani), assembled
by Brâncuși's friend engineer Ștefan Georgescu-Gorjan (1905–1985), and completed on 27 October
1938.
All 16 rhomboidal modules accumulate a total height of 29.3 m.
1. THE SYMBOLISM OF THE ROMANIAN FUNERAL PILLAR AS "COSMIC TREE" AND "AXIS OF THE WORLD"
The Infinite Column therefore represents all these universal symbols of the "Cosmic Tree", the "Pillar of
Heaven" or the "Pillar of Heaven", which are essentially equivalent to the primordial symbol of the Axis of
the World, a symbol whose archaism is no longer required to be proven. Both in hunters and shepherds in
Central and North Asia, and in the primitive cultures of Oceania, Africa, and the Americas. In this way, it
signifies the passage or ascension from our terrestrial world, finite (profane, destructible), to the "world
beyond" (of the sacred, indestructible) which is infinite.

2. THE SYMBOLISM OF THE ROMANIAN FUNERAL PILLAR AS "CENTER OF THE WORLD"

This Axis of the World is also equivalent to the "Tree of Life," which grows into the "Center of the World"
or the "Navel of the Earth." So a Romanian funeral pillar can also symbolize the idea of "Center of the
World", as well as the Infinite Column that represents it.

3. THE INFINITE COLUMN AND THE REPRESENTATION OF THE DIVINITY AS A "PILLAR OF LIGHT" OR
"PILLAR OF FIRE"
The bright yellow of the Infinite Column - obviously especially on sunny days - due to its brightening,
could also suggest the epiphany of the Divinity as "Pillar of Light" or "Pillar of Fire". Which connects the
Sky (represented by a semicircle) to the Earth, appears as a divine symbol in an exterior fresco of the
Voroneţ monastery. The symbol of the flame is also found in Islam. Thus, a Persian miniature from the
17th century symbolizes Muhammad in the form of a flame on the back of a camel, and the Uyghur
manuscript "Book of Ascension" from the 16th century. The 15th century depicts Muhammad and Musa
(Moses) surrounded by flames and flaming serpents, or Muhammad with the archangel Gabriel, also
surrounded by flames, as in the case of Muhammad and Fatima. A conclusion to the above is that the
term Infinity in the nomenclature of this monumental piece, refers primarily to the Divinity, or more
precisely to its attribute of being an infinite cosmic being and creator of an infinite cosmos, through the
string endless in space and time of the worlds she created.
In my opinion, The Infinite Column symbolizes the concept of infinity arising from the sacrifice of the
Romanian soldiers. The Infinite Column stacks 15 rhomboidal modules, with a half-unit at the top and
bottom, making a total of 16. The incomplete top unit is thought to be the element that expresses the
concept of the infinite. I believe that the 16 rhomboidal modules represents coffins placed on top of each
other as an homage for the people that died in war.
The Column starts with half of the coffin placed on the ground, illustrating that the Earth is connected
with all the people that die and represent the structure of the pillar of life. The last rhomboidal module is
also opened. This makes the connection between Earth, people and sky and it also shows that the column
will be continued and is in an infinite association with all the elements.
I believe that the main influences for this sculpture are the Romanian style of building houses
(Brancovenesc style) and the Romanians simple rural life style.

As Brancusi always illustrates in his works, he avoided to make the sculpture with real characteristics
and tended to illustrate in his works the quintessence of the objects and try as much as possible to escape
the real world and find his own vision and the soul of the stone.
 Brancusi believes that in order to find and sculpt the form closest to nature and the most sincere, he
must look in the roots of cultures. He wanted to search the roots of every people to find the most
appropriate form between art and nature.
I believe this image of a rural Romanian sitting on a coffin, is very close to the quintessence of the Infinite
Column. The old man sits probably on the coffin of his dead wife and wait consciously for his death. You
can see the similarities of the coffin and the rhomboidal modules of the Infinite Column. I think Brancusi
wanted to illustrate the simplicity of people and show that all people are the same and that death is
inevitable. At the same time I think Brancusi wanted to express that after death the soul will be free and
infinite.

Conclusions

Finally, concluding the data presented above, the complexity and admiration for the works of the
sculptor Constantin Brâncuşi, which will last for many years from today, emerges.

Constantin Brâncuşi freed the sculpture from the preponderance of the mechanical imitation of nature,
he refused the figurative representation of reality, he expected the expression of the essence of things,
of the dynamism of form, and he united the sensible with the spiritual. In his work, Brâncuşi reflected
the Romanian peasant's way of thinking. Through his peasant origin, he found the deep roots of his work
in the traditions, myths and magical function of Romanian folk art. Brâncuşi is, without a doubt, such a
moment of the consciousness of modern art, which concentrates the meanings of an entire era of the
evolution of the creative spirit.

I consider that Neolithic art was the main influence of Brancusi's art. Brancusi searched in the roots of
ancient culture in Europe and highlighted the simplicity and spirituality of Neolithic sculpture. An
example is the Cernavoda Thinker. This terracotta sculpture played a very important role in the art of
sculpture. Agustin Rodin was influenced by this work and in 1902 he created The Thinker which, in my
opinion, is a combination of Michelangelo's style (David, Laocoön and His Sons, etc.) and The Thinker
from Cernavoda.

At the same time, Brancusi based his search on the purest essence. He seeks the form closest to nature
and naturalness. Therefore, besides the fact that his sculptures are influenced by Romanian traditions
and information learned from schools, Brancusi came to the conclusion that to find the most sincere
form of the spirit you have to look in the roots of each culture because they represent the most sincere
form. And the closest connection between man and nature. I believe this because there is a great
connection between his art and Neolithic and African sculpture. We can see how Brancusi made Negresa
Blonda and Miss Pogany. These sculptures show most obviously how Brancusi took elements from
African art and fused it with the simplicity of life in the Romanian village and the knowledge gained from
school.
In conclusion, Constantin Brâncuşi was and will remain known throughout Europe as a great sculptor
who brought a reputation to our country and is an important cultural value among all personalities in
Romania.