Margaret Brassler Kane (May 25, 1909 – April 10, 2006) was an American figurative sculptor known for her use of the direct-carving method. Brassler Kane was born to parents Hans and Mathilde Trumpler Brassler in

East Orange East Orange is a City (New Jersey), city in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 69,612. The city was List of municipalities in ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, and moved with her parents to Brooklyn in 1918. She attended

Packer Collegiate Institute The Packer Collegiate Institute is an independent college preparatory school for students from pre-kindergarten through grade 12. Formerly the Brooklyn Female Academy, Packer has been located at 170 Joralemon Street in the historic district of Br ...

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

, and the

Art Students League of New York The Art Students League of New York is an art school at 215 West 57th Street in Manhattan, New York City, New York. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may stu ...

, as well as took lessons with

John Hovannes John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

. She won a number of prizes for her art during the 1940s. Many of her pieces depicted contemporary life, and tackled current issues of the day, including socioeconomic injustice and war. Brassler Kane was married to Arthur Ferris Kane in June 1930. One of Brassler Kane's best known works is a group of large relief panels carved in

limewood ''Tilia'' is a genus of about 30 species of trees or bushes, native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The tree is known as linden for the European species, and basswood for North American species. In Britain and Ireland they ...

, each six-by-six foot: ''Symbols of Changing Man'' (1937-39), ''Earthbound'' (1950-57), and ''Micro-Macrocosm'' (1960-67). The panels depict the history of humanity, exploring themes of science, technology, industry, religion, and social conflict. However, until 2018, all of the panels had never been exhibited together. ''Blackout'', which shows an family of refugees fleeing from war, was exhibited at the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

in 1942 in a contemporary art show entitled "Artists for Victory." ''Bread and Wine'' (1940) is a bronze work that contrasts impoverished figures on a

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

-era breadline with well-off bargoers mingling over cocktails. ''Harlem Dancers'' (1937), carved in Tennessee marble, is in the collection of the

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (commonly known as SAAM, and formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds o ...

. Brassler Kane was a founding member of the

Sculptors Guild Sculptors Guild, a society of sculptors who banded together to promote public interest in contemporary sculpture, was founded in 1937. Signatories to the original corporation papers (Sculptors Guild, Inc.) were Sonia Gordon Brown, Berta Margoulie ...

References

External links

* More information is available about the artist a
www.margaretbrasslerkane.com

References

1909 births 2006 deaths 20th-century American sculptors People from East Orange, New Jersey Sculptors from New Jersey Syracuse University alumni Art Students League of New York alumni Sculptors from New York (state) 21st-century American women 20th-century American women sculptors {{US-sculptor-stub