Boris Lovet-Lorski Art

Preliminary Study for a Sculpture Project Graphite, charcoal and wash on tracing paper, c. 1930-1940 Signed upper left and lower left (see both photos) Created while the artist was l...

Untitled (Standing Female Nude) Graphite on paper, c. 1930 Signed bottom right: Lorski (see photo) Sheet size: 9 5/16 x 5 13/16 inches From a sketchbook created while the artist was working in Paris Condition: Good Thin spots verso from previous mounting Soft vertical fold running across image Barely visible on recto Provenance: Estate of the Artist Dawson's Auctioneers and Appraisers, 2001 Amity Art Foundation Boris Lovet-Lorski Lithuanian/Russian/American 1894-1973 Sculptor, painter, and printmaker, Boris Lovet-Lorski was born in Lithuania in 1894. His mother died when he was age three. His father was affluent and owned real estate. Boris grew up in a privileged environment. He studied architecture and then fine arts at the Imperial Academy of Art in Petrograd, Russia (now Saint Petersburg). Following the revolution in 1917 and its aftermath, Boris immigrated to Boston to live with his brother. In the 1920’s, his stylized, Art Deco inspired sculptures, lithographs, and paintings proved to be popular among the American elite. He exhibited frequently, holding his first solo exhibition in Boston, 1920. In the following years, Boris exhibited in New York at Marie Sterner Gallery, Jacques Seligmann Galleries and Wildenstein and Company. He lived in Paris from 1926 to 1932 where he befriended Joseph Hecht, and was exposed to the works of Pablo Picasso, Ossip Zadkine, Contantin Brancusi and Aristide Maillol. In 1932 he returned to America where he became a citizen later in the decade. Lovet-Lorski exhibited in the United States, South America, Europe and Asia. He was a member of the Society of Independent Artists (New York), the National Academy of Design (New York), and the Lotos Club (New York), as well as several Parisian salons. His work is in the permanent collections of numerous museums including the Musée Luxembourg, Bibliotèque Nationale, and the Petit Palais in France, the British Museum in London, the Metropolitan Museum in New York, the National Gallery in Washington, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. (A more extensive list of his works in museums follows) He is considered one of the most successful and recognized sculptors of his generation. His creative influence can be seen in many of his contemporary artists. He died in Los Angeles in 1973. Regarding his iconic Art Deco sculptures of Cretan Dancers: “The stylizing of the Cretan allegories, used in figures of animals such as horses and bulls, symbolizes the ancient power of the South. These figures reveal a spiritual sensuality as he strives to attain a symbol of the earth and universe endowed with musical values. If man is the center of his idea of life and nature, it is because of the laws that govern the movement of stars and history. The link binding his figures together has, in a sense, a Pythagorean harmony.” Salvatore Quasimodo, Milan, 1967, quoted from Bush, Boris Lover-Lorski: The Language of Time, page 12. Lovet-Lorski created sculptures of the following major figures I.J. Paderewski, Prime Minister of Poland Arturo Toscanini, Italian Conductor Lilian Gish, Actress President Franklin D. Roosevelt Mrs. M. C. Niarchos, wife of Stavros Niarchos President Abraham Lincoln James Forrestal, Secretary of the Navy, First Secretary of Defense Pope Pius XII Dr. Albert Einstein, theoretical physicist President Dwight D. Eisenhower Albert Schweitzer, theologian, organist, writer, humanitarian, philosopher, and physician General Charles De Gaulle, President of the Fourth and Fifth Republic, France John Foster Dulles, Secretary of State, 1953-1959 President John F. Kennedy Works by Lover Lorski are in the following public collections: Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo Art Institute of Chicago Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris Brandeis University, Waltham, MA British Museum, London Boston University Brooklyn Museum California Palace of the Legion of Honor, Sam Francisco...

Famed Art Deco Sculptor Boris Lovet-Lorski depicts his signature "Stallion." in this stunningly elegant drawing. It features a nude female that is compositionally and spiritually in...

Untitled (Two Standing Nudes, one seated nude) Graphite on wove paper, heightened with color, c. 1930 Unsigned From a sketchbook created while the artist was working in Paris Condition: Very good Provenance: Estate of the Artist Dawson's Auction, Morris Plains, NY, 2001 Boris Lovet-Lorski Lithuanian/Russian/American 1894-1973 Sculptor, painter, and printmaker, Boris Lovet-Lorski was born in Lithuania in 1894. His mother died when he was age three. His father was affluent and owned real estate. Boris grew up in a privileged environment. He studied architecture and then fine arts at the Imperial Academy of Art in Petrograd, Russia (now Saint Petersburg). Following the revolution in 1917 and its aftermath, Boris immigrated to Boston to live with his brother. In the 1920’s, his stylized, Art Deco inspired sculptures, lithographs, and paintings proved to be popular among the American elite. He exhibited frequently, holding his first solo exhibition in Boston, 1920. In the following years, Boris exhibited in New York at Marie Sterner Gallery, Jacques Seligmann Galleries and Wildenstein and Company. He lived in Paris from 1926 to 1932 where he befriended Joseph Hecht, and was exposed to the works of Pablo Picasso, Ossip Zadkine, Contantin Brancusi and Aristide Maillol. In 1932 he returned to America where he became a citizen later in the decade. Lovet-Lorski exhibited in the United States, South America, Europe and Asia. He was a member of the Society of Independent Artists (New York), the National Academy of Design (New York), and the Lotos Club (New York), as well as several Parisian salons. His work is in the permanent collections of numerous museums including the Musée Luxembourg, Bibliotèque Nationale, and the Petit Palais in France, the British Museum in London, the Metropolitan Museum in New York, the National Gallery in Washington, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. (A more extensive list of his works in museums follows) He is considered one of the most successful and recognized sculptors of his generation. His creative influence can be seen in many of his contemporary artists. He died in Los Angeles in 1973. Regarding his iconic Art Deco sculptures of Cretan Dancers: “The stylizing of the Cretan allegories, used in figures of animals such as horses and bulls, symbolizes the ancient power of the South. These figures reveal a spiritual sensuality as he strives to attain a symbol of the earth and universe endowed with musical values. If man is the center of his idea of life and nature, it is because of the laws that govern the movement of stars and history. The link binding his figures together has, in a sense, a Pythagorean harmony.” Salvatore Quasimodo, Milan, 1967, quoted from Bush, Boris Lover-Lorski: The Language of Time, page 12. Lovet-Lorski created sculptures of the following major figures I.J. Paderewski, Prime Minister of Poland Arturo Toscanini, Italian Conductor Lilian Gish, Actress President Franklin D. Roosevelt Mrs. M. C. Niarchos, wife of Stavros Niarchos President Abraham Lincoln James Forrestal, Secretary of the Navy, First Secretary of Defense Pope Pius XII Dr. Albert Einstein, theoretical physicist President Dwight D. Eisenhower Albert Schweitzer, theologian, organist, writer, humanitarian, philosopher, and physician General Charles De Gaulle, President of the Fourth and Fifth Republic, France John Foster Dulles, Secretary of State, 1953-1959 President John F. Kennedy Works by Lover Lorski are in the following public collections: Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo Art Institute of Chicago Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris Brandeis University, Waltham, MA British Museum, London Boston University Brooklyn Museum California Palace of the Legion of Honor, Sam Francisco...

Preliminary study for Cretan Dancer bronze sculpture Unsigned Graphite on tracing paper, 1930-1934 Sheet size: 6 7/8 x 7 1/8 inches Created while the artist was woring in Paris, c. 1930 “The stylizing of the Cretan allegories, used in figures of animals such as horses and bulls, symbolizes the ancient power of the South. These figures reveal a spiritual sensuality as he strives to attain a symbol of the earth and universe endowed with musical values. If man is the center of his idea of life and nature, it is because of the laws that govern the movement of stars and history. The link binding his figures together has, in a sense, a Pythagorean harmony.” Salvatore Quasimodo, Milan, 1967, quoted from Bush, Boris Lover-Lorski: The Language of Time, page 12. Regarding the artist: Boris Lovet-Lorski Lithuanian/Russian/American 1894-1973 Sculptor, painter, and printmaker, Boris Lovet-Lorski was born in Lithuania in 1894. His mother died when he was age three. His father was affluent and owned real estate. Boris grew up in a privileged environment. He studied architecture and then fine arts at the Imperial Academy of Art in Petrograd, Russia (now Saint Petersburg). Following the revolution in 1917 and its aftermath, Boris immigrated to Boston to live with his brother. In the 1920’s, his stylized, Art Deco inspired sculptures, lithographs, and paintings proved to be popular among the American elite. He exhibited frequently, holding his first solo exhibition in Boston, 1920. In the following years, Boris exhibited in New York at Marie Sterner Gallery, Jacques Seligmann Galleries and Wildenstein and Company. He lived in Paris from 1926 to 1932 where he befriended Joseph Hecht, and was exposed to the works of Pablo Picasso, Ossip Zadkine, Contantin Brancusi and Aristide Maillol. In 1932 he returned to America where he became a citizen later in the decade. Lovet-Lorski exhibited in the United States, South America, Europe and Asia. He was a member of the Society of Independent Artists (New York), the National Academy of Design (New York), and the Lotos Club (New York), as well as several Parisian salons. His work is in the permanent collections of numerous museums including the Musée Luxembourg, Bibliotèque Nationale, and the Petit Palais in France, the British Museum in London, the Metropolitan Museum in New York, the National Gallery in Washington, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. (A more extensive list of his works in museums follows) He is considered one of the most successful and recognized sculptors of his generation. His creative influence can be seen in many of his contemporary artists. He died in Los Angeles in 1973. Regarding his iconic Art Deco sculptures of Cretan Dancers: “The stylizing of the Cretan allegories, used in figures of animals such as horses and bulls, symbolizes the ancient power of the South. These figures reveal a spiritual sensuality as he strives to attain a symbol of the earth and universe endowed with musical values. If man is the center of his idea of life and nature, it is because of the laws that govern the movement of stars and history. The link binding his figures together has, in a sense, a Pythagorean harmony.” Salvatore Quasimodo, Milan, 1967, quoted from Bush, Boris Lover-Lorski: The Language of Time, page 12. Lovet-Lorski created sculptures of the following major figures I.J. Paderewski, Prime Minister of Poland Arturo Toscanini, Italian Conductor Lilian Gish, Actress President Franklin D. Roosevelt Mrs. M. C. Niarchos, wife of Stavros Niarchos President Abraham Lincoln James Forrestal, Secretary of the Navy, First Secretary of Defense Pope Pius XII Dr. Albert Einstein, theoretical physicist President Dwight D. Eisenhower Albert Schweitzer, theologian, organist, writer, humanitarian, philosopher, and physician General Charles De Gaulle, President of the Fourth and Fifth Republic, France John Foster Dulles, Secretary of State, 1953-1959 President John F. Kennedy Works by Lover Lorski are in the following public collections: Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo Art Institute of Chicago Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris Brandeis University, Waltham, MA British Museum, London Boston University Brooklyn Museum California Palace of the Legion of Honor, Sam Francisco...

White stone head in the art deco style. Born in Lithuania at the end of the nineteenth century, Boris Lovet-Lorski studied art at the Imperial Academy of Art in St. Petersburg before working briefly as an architect. He immigrated to New York in 1920 and became an American citizen five years later. His sculptures epitomize the ideals of the Art Deco decades: comprised of sleek lines and smooth surfaces, the streamlined compositions reflect the new technological forms of the machine age. Despite their modernist treatment, Lovet-Lorski’s elegant, stylized figures reference both ancient and classical sources and are characterized by a universal and serene sensibility. Concentrating on figural busts, familial groups, and standing female nudes as his subject matter, the artist rendered them in a variety of media. The materials range from the traditional bronze and marble to exotic woods and unusual stones; each is carefully selected so that its surface texture and color contribute to the emotive aura of the work. Carved out of a block of limestone, Untitled (Head) depicts a female visage nearly androgynous in its idealization. The delicate features of her face, the long, straight nose, thin pursed lips and high cheekbones, are made even more diminutive by the massive bulk of the stone that serves as their backdrop. The prominent widow’s peak of her hairline and the strong arch of her brow, two of Lovet-Lorski’s most distinctive characteristics, are elongated to accentuate the linear rhythms of the composition. The layers of her hair are delineated by stepped striations reminiscent of archaic precedents, which meld into structural columns and connect the form architecturally to the stone’s mass. Unlike the majority of Lovet-Lorski’s sculptures, in which the heads of the figures are tilted to the side or downward to convey a pensive mood, the woman in Untitled (Head) looks straight ahead. Her frontal positioning gives the composition a nearly perfect symmetry, in turn endowing the work with a still, eternal sensibility. The notched surface of the surrounding limestone stands in sharp contrast to the smoothness of her skin. In the twenties, the artist tended to finish his sculptures to a highly polished degree of refinement, but in the thirties he began to experiment with contrasts of texture and the aesthetic of the fragment. In this respect, the work is vaguely evocative of Egyptian funerary sculptures, in which the figures were carved with an eye for three-dimensionality but were left intact in a larger piece of stone to give them physical durability and permanence. Embodying classical ideals of stoicism and universal beauty, the sculpture ultimately exudes a surface allure that is difficult to resist. A similar example of this approach can be seen in the 1937 sculpture Diana, which resides in the permanent collection of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington D.C. Carved from a piece of black Belgian marble, the work is a stylized bust of the Greek goddess Diana...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, 'Untitled (Profile of a Black Woman)', lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 14 in pencil. Number 14 of Volume 2, a series of 10 lithographs publishe...

Preliminary Study for Cretan Dancer Bronze Graphite on tracing paper, 1930 Unsigned Note: The bronze sculpture measures 24 1/2 x 33 5/8 inches and is signed and dated 1930 on the base (see image on right). It is currently being offered for sale by Taylor Graham Gallery in New York. (see photo) “The stylizing of the Cretan allegories, used in figures of animals such as horses and bulls, symbolizes the ancient power of the South. These figures reveal a spiritual sensuality as he strives to attain a symbol of the earth and universe endowed with musical values. If man is the center of his idea of life and nature, it is because of the laws that govern the movement of stars and history. The link binding his figures together has, in a sense, a Pythagorean harmony.” Salvatore Quasimodo, Milan, 1967, quoted from Bush, Boris Lover-Lorski: The Language of Time, page 12. Image size: 6 1/2 x 6 1/2 inches Condition: Repaired tear in the lower left corner (see detail photo) Boris Lovet-Lorski Lithuanian/Russian/American 1894-1973 Sculptor, painter, and printmaker, Boris Lovet-Lorski was born in Lithuania in 1894. His mother died when he was age three. His father was affluent and owned real estate. Boris grew up in a privileged environment. He studied architecture and then fine arts at the Imperial Academy of Art in Petrograd, Russia (now Saint Petersburg). Following the revolution in 1917 and its aftermath, Boris immigrated to Boston to live with his brother. In the 1920’s, his stylized, Art Deco inspired sculptures, lithographs, and paintings proved to be popular among the American elite. He exhibited frequently, holding his first solo exhibition in Boston, 1920. In the following years, Boris exhibited in New York at Marie Sterner Gallery, Jacques Seligmann Galleries and Wildenstein and Company. He lived in Paris from 1926 to 1932 where he befriended Joseph Hecht, and was exposed to the works of Pablo Picasso, Ossip Zadkine, Contantin Brancusi and Aristide Maillol. In 1932 he returned to America where he became a citizen later in the decade. Lovet-Lorski exhibited in the United States, South America, Europe and Asia. He was a member of the Society of Independent Artists (New York), the National Academy of Design (New York), and the Lotos Club (New York), as well as several Parisian salons. His work is in the permanent collections of numerous museums including the Musée Luxembourg, Bibliotèque Nationale, and the Petit Palais in France, the British Museum in London, the Metropolitan Museum in New York, the National Gallery in Washington, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. (A more extensive list of his works in museums follows) He is considered one of the most successful and recognized sculptors of his generation. His creative influence can be seen in many of his contemporary artists. He died in Los Angeles in 1973. Regarding his iconic Art Deco sculptures of Cretan Dancers: “The stylizing of the Cretan allegories, used in figures of animals such as horses and bulls, symbolizes the ancient power of the South. These figures reveal a spiritual sensuality as he strives to attain a symbol of the earth and universe endowed with musical values. If man is the center of his idea of life and nature, it is because of the laws that govern the movement of stars and history. The link binding his figures together has, in a sense, a Pythagorean harmony.” Salvatore Quasimodo, Milan, 1967, quoted from Bush, Boris Lover-Lorski: The Language of Time, page 12. Lovet-Lorski created sculptures of the following major figures I.J. Paderewski, Prime Minister of Poland Arturo Toscanini, Italian Conductor Lilian Gish, Actress President Franklin D. Roosevelt Mrs. M. C. Niarchos, wife of Stavros Niarchos President Abraham Lincoln James Forrestal, Secretary of...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, Untitled (Nude with Horse), lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 10 in pencil. Number 10 of Volume 1, a series of 10 ...

Pair of rare signed Art Deco lithographs by Boris Lovet-Lorski. Lacquered wood frames. Boris Lovet-Lorski (1894-1973), sculptor, lithographer, a...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, Untitled (Presence), lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed in pencil. From a suite of 10 lithographs published by the artist and printed by Ad. Braun & Co., Paris...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, Untitled (Rendez-Vous), lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed in pencil. Signed in the stone, lower right. From a suite of 10 lithographs published by the artist ...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, Untitled (Nude with Geometric Forms), lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 8 in pencil. Number 8 of Volume 1, a series of 10 lithographs published b...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, Untitled (Nike), lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 1 in pencil. Number 1 of Volume 1, a series of 10 lithographs in each of 2 portfolios, publish...

Pair of rare signed Art Deco lithographs by Boris Lovet-Lorski. Lacquered wood frames. Boris Lovet-Lorski (1894-1973), sculptor, lithographer, and painter who contributed significantly to the American Art Deco movement, was born in Lithuania in 1894. Trained as an architect at the Royal Academy in Petrograd, Boris Lovet-Lorski was very aware of volume and structural space. His architectural background combined with other influences like the flattened aesthetic of Art Deco, produce a distinctly original style. Along with his idealized subjects, the originality and artistry of his design quickly won the young sculptor...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, 'Untitled (Black Woman Crouching)', lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 16 in pencil. Number 16 of Volume 2, a series of...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, 'Untitled (Nude Crucified)', lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 19 in pencil. Number 19 of Volume 2, a series of 10 lithographs published by the a...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, Untitled (Nude Dancer in Modernist Stage-setting), lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 20 in pencil. Number 20 of Volume ...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, Untitled (Portrait of an African Woman), lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 13 in pencil. Number 13 of Volume 2, a series of 10 lithographs publis...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, 'Untitled (Nude in Landscape)', lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 5 in pencil. Number 5 of Volume 1, a series of 10 lithographs published by the ...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, 'Untitled (Nude Dancer)', lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 12 in pencil. Number 12 of Volume 2, a series of 10 lithogr...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, Untitled (Profile of an African Woman), lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 15 in pencil. Number 15 of Volume 2, a series of 10 lithographs publish...

Reclining Female Nude Graphite on wove paper, heightened with colors, c. 1930 Signed with the artist's initials BLL lower left (see photo) Sheet s...

Boris Lovet-Lorski, Untitled (Crucifixion), lithograph, edition 250, 1929. Signed and numbered 7 in pencil. Number 7 of Volume 1, a series of 10 lithographs published by the artist a...

Beautiful vintage life-Size cranes sculpture designed by Boris Lovet-Lorski in Lithuania, circa 1950s. These elegant cranes intertwine at their necks and t...

Quintessentially Art Deco, with long, lean lines and a highly stylized nude, this drawing was executed by Boris Lovet-Lorski in Paris, before he settled in America at the age of 26. ...