Le Nouveau-Né by Constantin Brancusi

Constantin Brancusi
1876-1957 | Romanian

Le Nouveau-Né
(The Newborn)

Polished bronze
Created 1915; Cast in 1971
Numbered 1/8 and foundry marked Susse Fondeurs Paris

“What is real is not the appearance, but the idea, the essence of things.” —Constantin Brancusi

Celebrated as the father of modern sculpture, Constantin Brancusi's visionary works revolutionized modern art with a new language of purity and profound simplicity. This exceptionally rare masterpiece, entitled Le Nouveau-Né (The Newborn), is one of the artist's most iconic sculptures, perfectly embodying Brancusi’s groundbreaking genius.

Brancusi is most famous for freeing modern sculpture from its need to depict reality. He focused instead on capturing the pure essence of things with simplified forms and natural materials such as stone and bronze. Our sculpture is one of Brancusi’s earliest and most important motifs in one of his trademark materials: The Newborn in highly polished bronze. The egg-like form has only subtle suggestions of a nose and mouth—communicating not the appearance of an infant, but evoking the very concept of a newborn and the profound potential of the future. The reflective surface comes to life with every movement of the viewer, dissolving the boundary between the artwork and its environment.

This sculpture was cast posthumously by Brancusi’s chosen heirs, fellow Romanian artists Natalia Dumitresco and Alexandre Istrati. In the 1970s and 80s, the artists—who were devoted companions of Brancusi and are now buried alongside him—created very few posthumous casts of Brancusi’s most important works from his original plasters. Our sculpture is the first of just eight examples of The Newborn cast in 1971 by Dumitresco and Istrati. Examples of this iconic sculpture, both lifetime and posthumous versions, are extraordinarily rare. All but one of the examples made during Brancusi’s lifetime are in important museums—including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Centre Pompidou and the Museum of Modern Art.

Beyond its artistic importance, this sculpture also comes with significant provenance. It was acquired directly from the artist’s estate by Mrs. Georges Pompidou. Georges Pompidou served as President of France from 1969 to 1974, and the couple was among the most important champions of contemporary art in Europe, founding the world-renowned Centre Pompidou in 1977, which houses Europe’s largest collection of modern and contemporary art. The Pompidou also serves as the permanent home of Brancusi’s studio, which the sculptor bequeathed to the French state in 1956.

Born into a family of farmers in Romania, Brancusi was a sculptural prodigy from an early age—famous in his town for fashioning a violin using only found materials. After training in Bucharest, the young artist set out for Paris in 1904, and soon landed the most coveted apprenticeship in sculpture: a position in the studio of Auguste Rodin. Brancusi lasted just one month, declaring that “nothing grows in the shade of great trees.” From that point on, he charted an entirely independent course that would change art history forever.

Brancusi catapulted quickly to international fame. In 1913, five of his sculptures appeared in the landmark Armory Show in New York—the first major exhibition of modern art in America. The photographer Alfred Stieglitz gave Brancusi his first solo show the following year, and prominent collectors such as John Quinn and Peggy Guggenheim eagerly acquired his works. Importantly, the artist's iconic Bird in Space sculpture became the subject of the watershed 1928 court case, Brancusi v. United States, when US customs classified the bronze sculpture as a manufactured object rather than a work of art. The ruling in Brancusi's favor fundamentally expanded the legal definition of art in America, affirming that sculpture could be abstract rather than representational.

Brancusi continued working until his death in 1957 in his Paris studio, which can still be visited today at the Centre Pompidou. His revolutionary artworks have been the subject of many major retrospectives and are held by the world's most prestigious institutions, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Tate Modern and many others. 

Dated 1971

5 1/2" high x 8" wide x 5 3/4" deep

View the Dossier

Provenance:
The estate of the artist
Mme Georges Pompidou, France, acquired from the above
Alain Pompidou, France, acquired by descent from the above
Private collection, acquired from the above in 2019
Private collection, Connecticut
M.S. Rau, New Orleans

Exhibited:
Paris, Artcurial, Hommage au president Georges Pompidou. Un homme de culture, 1987, p. 18 (illustrated in color)
Paris, Maison des Arts Georges Pompidou, "Autour d'une collection," le Président et Madame Georges Pompidou, 1994, n.p. (illustrated in color)
Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Passions privées: collections particulières d'art moderne et contemporain en France, 1995-1996, cat. A 50-3, pp. 434-435 (illustrated in color)