Bernard Rosenthal
Encyclopedia
Abstract art
Abstract art uses a visual language of form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th century, underpinned by the logic of perspective and an...
sculptor. He was the creator of the outdoor cube, Alamo
Alamo (sculpture)
Alamo, also known as the Astor Place Cube, or simply The Cube, is an outdoor sculpture by Bernard Rosenthal, located on Astor Place, on the island of Manhattan in New York City. It takes the form of a black cube, long on each side, mounted on a corner. The cube is made of Cor-Ten steel and weighs...
that: “established him as a master of monumental public sculpture, and something of a standard bearer of the contemporary structurist esthetic.” He stated:
- ”It is…important to me that the sculpture interact with the public.”
Biography
Tony Rosenthal was born August 9, 1914 in Highland Park, IL, a suburb of ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
.
Studied:
- 1930-1932: attended evening and Saturday sculpture classes at The Art Institute of Chicago.;
- 1932-1936: attended University of MichiganUniversity of MichiganThe University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
, Ann Arbor, MI where he graduated with a B.A.; - 1936: studied with Archipenko in Chicago;
- 1939: attended the Cranbrook Academy of Art, in Bloomfield Hills, MI where he studied with Carl Milles.
Military Service in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
:
- 1942-1946: He served in the US Army; attended Corps of Engineers Officer Candidate School in VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. Later he became unit commanderCommanderCommander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
in EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Teaching Positions:
- 1945: He taught at the American UniversityAmerican UniversityAmerican University is a private, Methodist, liberal arts, and research university in Washington, D.C. The university was chartered by an Act of Congress on December 5, 1892 as "The American University", which was approved by President Benjamin Harrison on February 24, 1893...
for the education of GIs, BiarritzBiarritzBiarritz is a city which lies on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast, in south-western France. It is a luxurious seaside town and is popular with tourists and surfers....
, FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
; - 1953: He taught at the University of CaliforniaUniversity of CaliforniaThe University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
, Los Angeles, CA
Monumental Sculptures in public places
Rosenthal was best known for his large outdoor geometric abstract sculptures. His works in public places include:- Nubian Slave, installed at the 1939 New York World's Fair1939 New York World's FairThe 1939–40 New York World's Fair, which covered the of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park , was the second largest American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904. Many countries around the world participated in it, and over 44 million people...
- AlamoAlamo (sculpture)Alamo, also known as the Astor Place Cube, or simply The Cube, is an outdoor sculpture by Bernard Rosenthal, located on Astor Place, on the island of Manhattan in New York City. It takes the form of a black cube, long on each side, mounted on a corner. The cube is made of Cor-Ten steel and weighs...
, Astor PlaceAstor Place (Manhattan)__notoc__Astor Place is a short two-block street in lower Manhattan, New York City, which runs from Broadway just below East 8th Street, through Lafayette Street, past Cooper Square and Fourth Avenue, and ends at Third Avenue and St. Marks Place. The name is also used for the neighborhood around...
, New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, 1967 - Endover (replica of Alamo), at the University of MichiganUniversity of MichiganThe University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in Ann Arbor, MI, 1967 - Odyssey I, Open Air Museum of Sculpture, Antwerp, Belgium, 1967
- Kepaakala (Sun Disc), Bank of Hawaii, Honolulu, HawaiiHonolulu, HawaiiHonolulu is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. Honolulu is the southernmost major U.S. city. Although the name "Honolulu" refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and county government are consolidated as the City and...
, 1969 - Rondo, 59th Street off Park AvenuePark Avenue (Manhattan)Park Avenue is a wide boulevard that carries north and southbound traffic in New York City borough of Manhattan. Through most of its length, it runs parallel to Madison Avenue to the west and Lexington Avenue to the east....
in New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, 1969 - 5 in 1, 1 Police Plaza in New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, 1974 - Big Six, 1975, The Chrysler Museum of ArtChrysler Museum of ArtThe Chrysler Museum of Art is an art museum in the Ghent district of Norfolk, Virginia. The museum was originally founded in 1933 as the Norfolk Museum of Arts and Sciences. In 1971, automotive heir, Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. , donated most of his extensive collection to the museum...
, Norfolk, VirginiaNorfolk, VirginiaNorfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, 1975 - Hammarskjold, Fashion Institute of TechnologyFashion Institute of TechnologyThe Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
in New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, 1977 - Pass-Thru, Hofstra UniversityHofstra UniversityHofstra University is a private, nonsectarian institution of higher learning located in the Village of Hempstead, New York, United States, about east of New York City: less than an hour away by train or car...
, 1988 - JS Bach Variation #9, Ravinia ParkRavinia ParkRavinia Festival is the oldest outdoor music festival in the United States, with a series of outdoor concerts and performances held every summer from June to September. It has been the summer home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra since 1936...
, Highland Park, IllinoisHighland Park, IllinoisHighland Park is a suburban municipality in Lake County, Illinois, United States, about north of downtown Chicago. As of 2009, the population is 33,492. Highland Park is one of several municipalities located on the North Shore of the Chicago Metropolitan Area.-Overview:Highland Park was founded...
, 1990
Tony Rosenthal died in Southampton, NY on July 28, 2009. He is survived by his wife, Cynthia Dillon Rosenthal.
See also
- Harold Harby, Los Angeles City Council member who denounced Rosenthal's statuary for the Los Angeles Police Building
- Earle D. BakerEarle D. BakerNot to be confused with George W. C. Baker, Los Angeles City Council member, 1931–35.Earle D. Baker was a prominent Hollywood food broker who was a member of the Los Angeles City Board of Education from 1949 to 1951 and of the Los Angeles City Council from 1951 until 1959.-Biography:Baker was born...
(1888-1987), Los Angeles City Council member who introduced a resolution to remove the Los Angeles Police Building statuary