Constantin Brancusi

In Late Latin, “matrix” signified “womb” as well as “source” and “origin,” deriving from “māter,” or “mother.” By the 1550s, it came to indicate “a place or medium where something is developed,” and, by the 1620s, “a mold in which something is cast or shaped.” Today, it is understood as “that which encloses or gives origin to something.” Matrix Muse embraces the term’s many layers in its exploration of the overarching philosophical and aesthetic theme of the muse, one of the most enduring in Brancusi’s oeuvre. Rather than merely encompassing the female form, Brancusi’s muse—with its iconic egg-like shape—pointed instead to the wider mysteries of being and power of life-giving sources.

Presenting a range of works—from sculptures in plaster and polished bronze to a selection of drawings and writings, photographs, and objects from his archive—this exhibition takes a holistic approach, offering a rare opportunity to grasp the overall development of one of Brancusi’s chief artistic preoccupations. His first forays into giving form to the genesis of life included portraits of children and newborns, “an important part of his creative output around 1906–10,” writes curator Ariane Coulondre. Later, she continues, “The child’s portrait turns into an egg or a cell, a metaphor at once for birth and the renewal of forms.” In Pace’s presentation, the bronze sculpture of Le premier cri (The First Cry) (1917) illustrates the striking elegance of this elemental form.

This figural distillation primarily played out in Brancusi’s portraiture of women, which began with recognizable facial features and, by 1910, had evolved into the simplified ovoid form of the muse, which he continued to develop through his career. This idealized, essential shape became the heart of Brancusi’s practice of radical abstraction by the early 1920s; he executed some fifteen Sleeping Muses in his lifetime, starting in 1909. Like the African and Cycladic fertility sculptures from which he drew inspiration, his muse sculptures celebrated woman’s potential to be the source of life, tapping into deep historical symbolism. Matrix Muse spotlights two muse sculptures: La muse endormie I (Sleeping Muse I) (1912), a plaster cast, and Une Muse (A Muse) (1918), featuring an upright bronze figure on a stone base. “While [Brancusi’s] point of departure was direct carving,” writes heritage restorer and sculpture specialist Chantal Quirot, “the plaster cast and bronze produced from this first work of art were further steps toward a more accomplished form.”

A selection of never-before-exhibited drawings in ink and gouache from 1917 to 1925 will also feature in Matrix Muse, opening a window onto a lesser-known facet of Brancusi’s practice. “With rare exceptions, the drawings are an accompaniment to the sculptures rather than preparatory sketches,” explains curator Marielle Tabart, continuing, “Although graphic art was only an occasional activity for Brancusi, it represented a significant part of his work, one that he did not hesitate to exhibit and publish. The wide range of graphic gestures makes drawing a less rigorous, more intimate exercise.” Brancusi created less than three hundred drawings over his career, many of them portraits of his female friends. As in his sculptures, these portraits are never exactly representational but emphasize essential features while pointing toward the greater promise and capacity of the muse.

Personal notes, photographs, and items from the artist’s archive will also be on view for the first time in Matrix Muse, providing a complete portrait of the artist and his unfolding exploration of this key subject across mediums. “The ‘genetrix muse’ appears as the heart of Brancusi’s visual innovation and obsessive quest to create an original art form—a ‘matrix’ that inspires much of modern and contemporary art history through today,” says Neutres.

Pace’s presentation will coincide with Brancusi: The Artist and His Studio at The Museum of Modern Art in New York, on view through February 27, 2027.