Muriel Brunner Castanis (1926 – 2006) was an American sculptor best known for her public art installments involving fluidly draped figures.
Biography
Born as Muriel Brunner on September 27, 1926 in New York City, the youngest of six children. She was raised in Greenwich Village and attended New York's High School of Music and Art. Castanis did not begin her art career until 1964 at the age of 38, and she was self-taught.
Her image is included in the iconic 1972 poster Some Living American Women Artists by Mary Beth Edelson.
Her 1980 exhibit at the OK Harris Works of Art in Manhattan led to her career breakthrough. Her work Corporate Goddesses (1982), features twelve fiberglass statues of faceless women standing 12 feet tall atop 580 California Street building, designed by architect Philip Johnson; it has stirred varying interpretations, as viewers try to understand the symbolism.
She died on 22 November 2006 at age 80 from lung failure in Greenwich Village neighborhood in New York City, and was survived by her husband George Castanis and their four children.
Works YearNameMaterialLocationNotes1982Corporate Goddesses fiberglass580 California Street, San Francisco, CaliforniaA series of twelve statues depicting female figures standing 12 feet tall and located along the edge of roofline of an office.1991Eagle Domainbronze, granite base Atlanta, GeorgiaThis is a tribute to Native Americans and features a 5-foot bronze figure on a 30-foot granite base located outside an office park.1992Ideals bronzePortland, Oregon1994L.U.R.E. (LURE) Angelsepoxy, resinNew York City, New YorkThis is no longer on display, but is a sculpture of loose angel figures. Was previously located inside a bar in New York City.
References
External links 580 California Street Sculpture, San Francisco Oral history interview with Muriel Castanis, 1971, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution