Concetta Maria Scaravaglione (July 9, 1900 – September 4, 1975) was an American sculptor. Her parents immigrated from

Calabria Calabria is a Regions of Italy, region in Southern Italy. It is a peninsula bordered by the region Basilicata to the north, the Ionian Sea to the east, the Strait of Messina to the southwest, which separates it from Sicily, and the Tyrrhenian S ...

, Italy, and Concetta was the youngest of nine children. She is known for her monumental figurative sculpture, her work for the

Federal Art Project The Federal Art Project (1935–1943) was a New Deal program to fund the visual arts in the United States. Under national director Holger Cahill, it was one of five Federal Project Number One projects sponsored by the Works Progress Administratio ...

(FAP), and her teaching career. In 1946, she received a grant from the

American Academy of Arts and Letters The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, Music of the United States, music, and Visual art of the United States, art. Its fixed number ...

, and in 1947, she was the first woman to receive the American Academy's

Prix de Rome The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...

award in visual arts.

Early life

Concetta Scaravaglione, like most artists, had to struggle with finances in order to fund her career. While she was young, her father died, leaving her mother with a small grocery store to manage on her own, with the help of the children. In public school, her teacher Cecelia Holmand saw her artistic talent and encouraged her to pursue art as a career. Scaravaglione then attended the tuition-free

National Academy of Design The National Academy of Design is an honorary association of American artists, founded in New York City in 1825 by Samuel Morse, Asher Durand, Thomas Cole, Frederick Styles Agate, Martin E. Thompson, Charles Cushing Wright, Ithiel Town, an ...

in NY, up until her sculpture class was cancelled because there were no co-ed classes available, and the academy refused to offer a class for a solitary female student. She then went to work at a lampshade and a perfume factory to save up, until she was awarded a scholarship to attend the

Art Students League The Art Students League of New York is an art school in the American Fine Arts Society in Manhattan, New York City. The Arts Students League is known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may study f ...

. There, she studied with

John Sloan John French Sloan (August 2, 1871 – September 7, 1951) was an American painter and etcher. He is considered to be one of the founders of the Ashcan school of American art. He was also a member of the group known as The Eight (Ashcan School), T ...

, A. Stirling Calder,

William Zorach William Zorach (February 28, 1889 – November 15, 1966) was an American sculptor, painter, printmaker, and writer. He won the Logan Medal of the Arts in 1927. He was at the forefront of American artists embracing cubism. He is the husband of ...

and

Boardman Robinson Boardman "Mike" Michael Robinson (1876–1952) was a Canadian-born American painter, illustrator and cartoonist. Biography Early years Boardman Robinson was born September 6, 1876, in Nova Scotia. He spent his childhood in England and Canada, ...

. In 1924, she received the Nicholas Roerich scholarship to study at the Masters Institute of Sculpture with Robert Laurent. Scaravaglione then spent the summer of 1928 in Oyster Bay, Long Island because she received the

Lewis Comfort Tiffany Louis Comfort Tiffany (February 18, 1848 – January 17, 1933) was an American artist and designer who worked in the decorative arts and is best known for his work in stained glass. He is associated with the art nouveauLander, David"The Buyable ...

grant.

Midlife

Sometime after returning to New York City from the Tiffany estate, Scaravaglione began her teaching career at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

. She briefly took a trip to Rome and explored other parts of Europe before returning to the United States. She expanded her teaching career by including assignments at

Black Mountain College Black Mountain College was a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Black Mountain, North Carolina. It was founded in 1933 by John Andrew Rice, Theodore Dreier, and several others. The coll ...

and

Sarah Lawrence College Sarah Lawrence College (SLC) is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Yonkers, New York, United States. Founded as a Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in 1926, Sarah Lawrence College has been coeducational ...

. She took another break from teaching, to focus on her artwork. Scaravaglione eventually returned to teaching in 1952 at

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States. The college be ...

. Throughout her teaching career, and subsequent breaks, Scaravaglione's professional art career took off. In 1926, she was elected to be a member of the

New York Society of Women Artists New York Society of Women Artists (NYSWA) is a group of women that aims to provide support and opportunities to New York-based female professional artists. The society was founded in 1925 by 26 women ( 23 painters and 3 sculptors). NYSWA organize ...

and produced a wooden sculpture titled "''The Bathers.''" In 1930, she participated in the Museum of Modern Art's exhibition entitled, "46 Painters and Sculptors Under 35 Years of Age." Her work, "''Mother and Child''" won the Widener Gold Medal from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in 1934. In the meantime, she was hired by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the Federal Art Projects (FAP). Due to her association with the WPA and FAP, Concetta Scaravaglione was one of twelve sculptors chosen to receive a commission for the Treasury Section of Painting and Sculpture. Under this commission, Scaravaglione made four works: "''Railway Mail Carrier, 1862''", an aluminum figure located at the Post Office Department; "''Agriculture''," a limestone relief at the Federal Trade Commission; "''Woman with Mountain Sheep''," a large plaster figure at the Federal Building for the New York World's Fair; and "''Aborigines''," a wood carving relief for the Drexel Hill Post Office in Pennsylvania. In 1937, Scaravaglione joined the Architect, Painters, and Sculptors Collaborative. This group was mostly made up of other Federal Arts Project artists who were encouraged to create works for public housing, hospitals, and other public spaces. This same year she became one of the founding members of the

Sculptors Guild Sculptors Guild, a society of sculptors who banded together to promote public interest in contemporary sculpture, was founded in 1937. Signatories to the original corporation papers (Sculptors Guild, Inc.) were Sonia Gordon Brown, Berta Margouli ...

. The Guild held their own show in 1938 with roughly 39,000 visitors in attendance. Scaravaglione had entered her sculpture "''Girl with Gazelle''" in the show, which received recognition on the covers of both ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...

'' and ''

Art Digest ''Arts Magazine'' was a prominent American monthly magazine devoted to fine art. It was established in 1926 and last published in 1992. History Founding Launched in 1926 and originally titled ''The Art Digest,'' it was printed semi-monthly from ...

''.

Later life

In 1947, Concetta Scaravaglione won the

award from the

American Academy in Rome The American Academy in Rome is a research and arts institution located on the Gianicolo in Rome, Italy. The academy is a member of the Council of American Overseas Research Centers. History 19th century In 1893, a group of American architect ...

, which made her the first woman to ever be awarded that honor. This award included transportation to and residence in the American Academy in Rome, studio space, and a $1,250 stipend per year, which she received each year from 1947 to 1950. IcarusbyConcettaS

During this time in Rome, Scaravaglione created "''Icarus''." Her inspiration for the piece was the poem "Icaro" by Lauro de Bosis, the Italian aviator and anti-fascist. "''Icarus''" was greeted with equally opposing opinions. Critics claimed the piece was too stylized in comparison to her previous works, whereas fans thought of it as a masterpiece. "''Icarus''," first seen in Rome, then housed at the Tishman Building, is now exhibited in the lobby of 60 Sutton Place in New York City. After returning to the United States, Scaravaglione was hired in 1952 as a part-time faculty at Vassar College where she taught sculpture until she retired in 1967. She continued to sculpt and carve, and when she "found carving too confining for her total artistic expression," she began exploring the technique of welding metal to construct her figures. Concetta Scaravaglione died in 1975 in New York City after a long bout with cancer.

Selected work

* ''Vincent Canade'', 1927, Museum of Modern Art, New York, New York * ''Railway Mail Carrier 1862'', 1936, Ariel Rios Federal Building, Washington District of Columbia * ''Americans at Work, Past and Present: Agriculture'', 1938, Federal Trade Commission Building, Washington District of Columbia * ''Girl with Faun'', 1938–1940, William Cullen Bryant High School, Queens, New York * ''Bird,'' 1952-1953 Arizona State University, University Art Museum, Tempe, Arizona * ''Angel'', 1962, Vassar College, Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, Poughkeepsie, New York * ''Mother and Child'', by 941, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, Virginia * ''Seated Girl'', 1939, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania * ''Seated Woman with a Guitar,'' n.d, Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati, Ohio * ''Standing Female Nude (Sculpture),''1939, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, District of Columbia

Principal exhibitions and shows

1930 Museum of Modern Art Exhibition, "46 Painters and Sculptors under 35 years of age" 1933 Fairmount Park Art Association Show 1934 Mayor LaGuardia-sponsored First Municipal Art Exhibition 1938 Federal Art Project Outdoor Sculpture Show 1941 Virginia Museum of Art, Solo Exhibition 1964 World's Fair, NY 1967 Vassar Art Gallery Show, Solo Exhibition 1972 Kraushaar Galleries, NY, Solo Exhibition

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scaravaglione, Concetta 1900 births 1975 deaths 20th-century American sculptors American people of Italian descent Art Students League of New York alumni Sculptors from New York City Black Mountain College faculty Federal Art Project artists New York University faculty Sarah Lawrence College faculty Sculptors Guild members Sculptors from New York (state) Vassar College faculty 20th-century American women sculptors