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The works of Modern Master Sculptor Manuel Carbonell displayed in a permanent exhibit at Beaux Arts Gallery encompasses an important collection of sculptures from 1986 to the present.

Carbonell, one of the great Latin American Masters, is the last of the Cuban Master Sculptors of his generation. This generation of Cuban artists, including Wifredo Lam and Agustin Cardena studied at the renowned Escuela Nacional de Bellas Artes “San Alejandro” in Havana, Cuba. At the Academia Carbonell studied under the guidance of Jose Sicres, a former student of Bourdelle, Rodin’s favorite disciple.

Upon graduation in 1945 Carbonell received the title of Professor of Drawing and Sculpture. He then traveled to France, Italy and Spain to work and study. Upon returning to Cuba, Carbonell received many national honors and awards and in 1954 he received the award for the capellana stone carving sculpture “Fin De Una Raza” at the Third Bienal Hispanoamericana de Arte (Barcelona, Spain).

In 1959, upon arriving in New York, Carbonell moved from his classical and religious period in Cuba in the 1949’s and 1950’s through the commencement and development of his modern expression of the 1960’s, culminating in Madison Avenue, then pinnacle of the art world. In 1963, he celebrated his first “One Man Show” at the renowned Schoneman Galleries in New York City. During the 15 years that the Schoneman Galleries exhibited Carbonell’s work, Carbonell was the only sculptor among the artists exhibited by the gallery, which included Picasso, Chagall, Braque, Monet, Matisse, Gauguin and Renoir.

In 1976, at a formal ceremony at the White House Rose Garden, Carbonell presented “The Bicentennial Eagle” as his gift to the United States of America. The sculpture is presently part of the Smithsonian Collection and is displayed at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library in Ann Arbor Michigan.

Following a period of self-imposed isolation, Carbonell resurges in 1986 to be represented by Beaux Arts Gallery and to be critically acclaimed as one of the greatest sculptors of the 20th century and today.

Mr. Carbonell’s art works is found in museums, galleries, private and corporate collections and important national and international public locations. His 53-foot bronze monument, “Tequesta Family” adorns the Brickell Avenue Bridge in Miami, Florida. “El Centinela Del Rio”, a 21-foot bronze and alabaster sculpture is located at Tequesta Point in Brickell Key, Miami. The 24–foot “Virgin of Fatima” is located at the Blue Army Shrine in Washington, New Jersey. A 6-foot marble sculpture of Cuban independence patriot Jose Marti is found at the San Carlos Institute, Key West, Florida.

His modern works are also part of important private and public art collections, “Couple in Love” adorns the lobby of the Mandarin Oriental, Miami, “Lovers” is found at the entrance of the Carbonell Condominium, named in the artist honor, “Torso” is found at Selby’s Five Point Park, downtown Sarasota, Florida, and “New Generation” in Xiujiahui Park, Shanghai, China. The sculpture “Amantes” will soon grace the entrance of the Bristol Hotel, Republic of Panama.

Carbonell’s inexhaustible vision and ever changing-style are the product of a brilliant talent and academic background. Ceaselessly searching for the essence of the form and the absence of details, he struggles to provide a sense of strength, monumentality and simplicity to his work. At 90 years of age, he continues to work daily in his studio.

Many aspects of Carbonell’s rich and varied oeuvre are denoted in this catalogue; from his unique personal style to the monumental feeling of his maquettes and sculptures that has led to commissions of major public works.

The Carbonell’s works shown in this catalogue provide compelling evidence of his exceptional artistic talent. A brilliant combination of creativity and technique, a consistent originality and a universal sense of beauty that the artist imparts to his work undoubtedly make him, as Dr. Fred Schoneman, Director of New York renowned Schoneman Galleries expressed in 1974, one of the Masters of Sculpture of our times.

Beaux Arts Gallery also represents Uruguayan artist and Carbonell's disciple Mauro Arbiza.