Albin Polasek
(Czech/American, 1879-1965)
Man Carving His Own Destiny, 1917
bronze
cast signature
overall: 19 3/4"h x 12 1/2"w x 7"d

Provenance:
The Ira Simon Collection, Chicago, Illinois

Catalog Note:
Albin Polasek created his first iteration of Man Carving His Own Destiny in 1907, while studying under Charles Grafly at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia. This sculpture depicts a man chiseling himself out of a stone. Polasek sculpted 53 different variations of this sculpture throughout his lifetime. The various recreations depict differences in the position of the figure's arm and how much of his body has emerged from the stone.

Ruth Sherwood, Albin's first wife, spoke on the conception of this sculpture, noting that: "all at once the idea took concrete form before his mind's eye: Man, blindly hewing his way out of darkness, carving his own destiny! Polasek could hardly wait to get home to start his composition. Man, chiseling himself, struggling to hack out his own character, carving his future by the effort of his will — it was part of his life, just what he himself had done, and into this composition he threw his whole soul, expressing himself more fully than he had ever done before."

At the age of 37, Polasek was invited to be the head of the sculpture department at the Art Institute of Chicago, where he remained for nearly 30 years. During his tenure there, he created some of his most notable works that remain installed around Illinois. Like many other sculptors of his time, he also created several cemetery memorials. Notable examples, such as The Pilgrim and The Mother, reside in Bohemian National Cemetery in Chicago.

Sculpture has an attractive patina. Light surface dirt. Minor light white plaster evident on left side exterior of rock in the sculpture. Underneath a thin scattered layer of light white plaster evident. Overall good condition.