Brancusi and His World

This collection of essays is based on 35 years of Edith Balas's scholarship of Constantin Brancusi, the twentieth century's most influential sculptor. In her 1987 book, Brancusi and Romanian Folk Traditions, Balas convincingly demonstrated that Brancusi's sculpture is rooted in his Romanian peasant origins, his artisan training, and the folklore familiar to him. The present collection of essays explores how this giant also related to his Parisian environment.

Edith Balas has been Professor of Art History at Carnegie Mellon University for the past thirty years. She is also Research Associate at the University of Pittsburgh. In addition to many articles in American and European journals, her publications include Brancusi and Romanian Folk Traditions, Michelangelo's Medici Chapel: A New Interpretation, Joseph Csaky: A Pioneer of Modern Sculpture, The Holocaust in the Painting of Valentin Lustig, The Mother Goddess in Italian Renaissance Art, The Early Work of Henry Koerner, and Michelangelo's Double Self-Portrait.