Born in Poland, Elie Nadelman studied art in Warsaw and Munich. In 1903 he moved to Paris, where he established a sculpture studio that was visited by artists such as Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse. His work combined the diverse influences of ancient Greek art, modern sculpture, and folk art. Nadelman emigrated to New York in 1914, at the outbreak of World War I. He was immediately drawn to the city’s popular culture—including theater, jazz, dance, and even the circus. Nadelman achieved enormous success and quickly established himself as the nation’s leading avant-garde sculptor. In 1919 he married a wealthy widow who shared his passion for folk art—objects created in traditional ways by artists with little or no formal training. Nadelman became an American citizen in 1927.
Nadelman’s work is infused with the energy and charm of American life. Drawing inspiration from the folk-art dolls that he collected, he created witty and sophisticated sculptures that are at once delightfully nostalgic and strikingly modern. Between 1923 and 1928, Nadelman and his wife spent more than a half million dollars acquiring American folk art. At the time, few people appreciated this art form. In 1926, the Nadelmans opened the Museum of Folk and Peasant Arts, the first museum of its kind in the nation. However, in the wake of the disastrous stock market crash of 1929, they were forced to sell their superb collection— much of which was bought by John D. Rockefeller and Colonial Williamsburg. Nadelman eventually vanished from the art world, and many of the friends he made later in life never knew that he was an artist.
In this masterly work, two doll-like figures perform the tango. Nadelman playfully captures the seductive grace of the dance and the exaggerated posturing of the dancers. Tango is actually two separate sculptures that were intended to be placed together. Nadelman created the sculpture while living in New York and exploring the various entertainments offered by the city. He also created sculptures inspired by other performers, including an orchestra conductor and a woman playing piano.
Tango was carved from the humble medium of cherry wood. Nadelman painted the sculpture with gesso, a chalky pigment mixed with glue. He rubbed and sanded the figures so that they would resemble the aged folk-art sculptures he admired and collected. While this technique creates an impression of naivety, the elegance of the figures is highly sophisticated.
