Atelier Brancusi is located in a small one level building
in front of the Centre George Pompidou. Constantin Brancusi is a major
figure in the history of modern sculpture. Born in Romania in 1876, he
settled in Paris in 1904 at the age of 28 and lived there until his
death in 1957. When he died, Brancusi left his 15e arrondissement studio
to the state on the condition that it will be reconstructed exactly as the
artist left it. This condition came from the artist's obsession with the
spatial relationship of the sculptures in his studio, going so far as to
replace each sold work to a plaster copy, and towards the end of his life
with the refusal to sell his work. The atelier was reconstructed and opened
in 1997 at the Pompidou Center in this small building designed by Renzo
Piano. There are four interconnected rooms which faithfully adhere to
Brancusi's arrangements. Studios one and two are crowded with fluid
sculptures including his well known abstract bird and column shapes. In
one of the rooms the artist's tools are displayed and they make an
interesting sight. My only disappointment was that the rooms are behind
glass. I believe that the impact of the works would have been even
stronger if not for the glass shielding.
