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Firebird

Theodore Roszak American, born Poland
1950–51
Not on view
The sculptures Roszak made after World War II represent a fusion of his previous geometric constructivism and a much freer expressionism. Firebird is one of the most successful works rendered in this new style. Of the concept behind the sculpture, Roszak told an interviewer: "It is Chinese . . . a Chinese allusion. I came upon it in Stravinsky, the wonderful piece of music he had written around it. He has these slow smoldering chords that accelerate and then whip up into a terrific frenzy of sound. . . . [The firebird] embodied a kind of ritualistic experience that found its habitat in practically any part of the world that has lived long enough to go through a smoldering and phoenixlike emergence out of complete desolation, affirming its life all over again."

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Firebird
  • Artist: Theodore Roszak (American (born Poland), Poznan 1907–1981 New York)
  • Date: 1950–51
  • Medium: Iron brazed with bronze and brass
  • Dimensions: 31 × 27 × 42 in., 173.5 lb. (78.7 × 68.6 × 106.7 cm, 78.7 kg)
  • Classification: Sculpture
  • Credit Line: The Muriel Kallis Steinberg Newman Collection, Gift of Muriel Kallis Newman, in memory of the artist, 1982
  • Object Number: 1982.16.1
  • Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art

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Untitled Photogram
Theodore Roszak
1937–41
[Photogram: Geometric Forms, Circles], Theodore Roszak American, born Poland, Gelatin silver print
[Photogram: Geometric Forms, Circles]
Theodore Roszak
ca. 1937–1941
[Photogram of Geometric Forms: 2 Circles, Square and Bar Inscribed within Larger Circle], Theodore Roszak American, born Poland, Gelatin silver print
[Photogram of Geometric Forms: 2 Circles, Square and Bar Inscribed within Larger Circle]
Theodore Roszak
1937–41
Staten Island
Theodore Roszak
1934
Study for "Firebird", Theodore Roszak American, born Poland, Brush and black ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper
Study for "Firebird"
Theodore Roszak
1950

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