Abram Belskie
Abram Belskie | |
---|---|
Born | Abraham Belskie[1]: 19 March 24, 1907 |
Died | November 7, 1988 | (aged 81)
Occupation | Sculptor |
Abram Belskie (March 24, 1907 – November 7, 1988) was a British-born sculptor who did his best-known work in the US. He is known for his 1939 collaboration with Robert Latou Dickinson on the Dickinson-Belskie Birth Series Sculptures.[1]
Biography
Belskie was born in London to Russian Jewish immigrants,[1]: 19 and grew up in Glasgow, Scotland.[1]: 19 He graduated from the Glasgow School of Art in 1926. In 1929 he emigrated to New York City, to work for British sculptor John Gregory,[2][1]: 19 as well as sculptor Malvina Hoffman.[1]: 19
In 1938, Hoffman recommended Belskie to physician Robert Latou Dickinson.[1]: 18 They immediately collaborated to create medical models which were exhibited at the New York World's Fair of 1939. These sculptures became known as the Dickinson-Belskie Birth Series, which became popular at the fair, and were soon reproduced for display worldwide.[1]: 11–18 [3] For the next decade, this collaboration would produce over a hundred other detailed medical models, ended only by the death of Dickinson.[1]: 19
In 1942, Belskie created two life-sized sculptures, Norma and Normman, based on data collected by Dickinson, and intended to represent the statistical ideal female and male figure.[4][5][6] After Dickinson's death in 1950, Belskie turned to creating medallions, some of which were medicine-related.[2]
Belskie died in 1988. In 1993, the Belskie Museum of Arts and Science was opened in
Memberships
- National Sculpture Society, fellow
- National Academy of Design, fellow
- The American Numismatic Society, fellow
- Allied Artists of America.
Awards
- John Keppie Traveling Scholarship, Scotland, 1926;
- Sir John Edward Burnett Prize, Scotland, 1928;
- Lindsay Morris Memorial Award, 1951;
- J. Sanford Saltus Medal, American Numismatic Society, 1959:
- Mrs. Louis Bennett Award, 1956; Golden Anniversary Prize, Allied Artists of America, 1963
Collections
In addition to private collections, Belskie's work is exhibited at:
- American Museum of Natural History, New York [7]
- The Field Museum, Chicago, Illinois[7]
- Mariner's Museum, Newport News, Virginia
- Brookgreen Gardens, Pawley Island, South Carolina
- Cleveland Health Museum, Cleveland, OH;
- Johnson & Johnson, New Brunswick, New Jersey.
- Jewish Theological Seminary, New York
- Park Avenue Synagogue, New York
- New York Academy of Medicine, New York [7]
- The Belskie Museum, Closter, New Jersey
- Warren Anatomical Museum at Harvard Medical School[3][8]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Holz, Rose (2017). "The 1939 Dickinson-Belskie Birth Series Sculptures: The Rise of Modern Visions of Pregnancy, the Roots of Modern Pro-Life Imagery, and Dr. Dickinson's Religious Case for Abortion". Papers in Women's and Gender Studies.
- ^ a b "Abram Belskie". The Belskie Museum of Art & Science. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
- ^ a b "Dickinson-Belskie Collection". Himetop: The History of Medicine Topographical Database. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
- ]
- ^ "Highlights From the Warren Anatomical Museum". Smithsonian Magazine. 1 January 2010. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
- ^ "Chicago Scholarship Online". Oxford Academic. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
- ^ a b c d Contillo, Christine (19 June 2005). "BY THE WAY; All Art Is Local". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
- ^ "Dickinson-Belskie Collection, 1939-2007. WAM 20500-20899. · OnView: Digital Collections & Exhibits". OnView: Digital Collections & Exhibits. Countway Library of Medicine. Retrieved 21 April 2023.