Magdalena Abakanowicz is among the most frequently exhibited and most highly regarded Polish artists worldwide. Her works can be found in the United States, France, Japan and elsewhere. Among her most significant open-air installations is the celebrated Chicago work, “Agora”, discussed in a separate entry. Many pieces are also held in museums; for catalogues of her works in Poland, including sculpture, see texts dedicated to individual institutions. Initially renowned for her monumental textile forms known as “Abakans”, she increasingly sited sculpture in the public realm. Solitary figures, faceless crowds, and organic or hybrid forms have become fixtures in the urban landscapes of many cities. Her work is marked by a distinctive capacity to probe boundaries between matter and emotion, individuality and collectivity, nature and civilisation. In open spaces across America, Asia and Europe, Abakanowicz’s sculptures serve not merely as elements of the landscape but as prompts for reflection on the human condition, on relations with nature, and on our obligations to others. They cultivate an intense presence at once unsettling and contemplative, where form and void, mass and the porosity of material generate disquieting narratives.

“Figura Rompa”, Biarritz
Bd du Général de Gaulle, Biarritz, France

Magdalena Abakanowicz’s “Figura Rompa” (bronze, 1997) belongs to the “Hand-like Trees” series. It was unveiled in 2000 in Biarritz.

“Bronze Crowd”, Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas
2001 Flora St, Dallas, United States

“Bronze Crowd” (1990) comprises thirty-six headless figures cast in bronze, installed at the Nasher Sculpture Center.

“Open-air Aquarium”, Philadelphia
717 S Christopher Columbus Blvd, Philadelphia, United States

“Open-air Aquarium” (2003) consists of thirty fish forms cut from sheet metal and mounted on poles before the Dockside Residences.

“Space of Stone”, Grounds For Sculpture, Hamilton Township
80 Sculptors Way, Hamilton Township, United States

“Space of Stone” (2002) comprises twenty-two granite boulders sited within the Grounds For Sculpture park.

“Space of Becalmed Beings”, Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art
1-1 Hijiyamakoen, Hiroshima, Japan

“Space of Becalmed Beings” (1992–1993) consists of forty casts from the “Backs” series, realised in bronze and installed at the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art.

“Negev”, The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
Derech Ruppin 11, Jerusalem, Israel

“Negev” (1987) is carved from limestone and held at The Israel Museum.

More information: Negev 

“Birds of Knowledge of Good and Evil”, in front of the Woman’s Club of Wisconsin, Milwaukee
813 E Kilbourn Ave, Milwaukee, United States

“Birds of Knowledge of Good and Evil” (2001) comprises six aluminium birds mounted on pillars of varying height.

“Caminando”, Hess Persson Estates, Napa
4411 Redwood Rd, Napa, United States

“Caminando” (1999) comprises twenty headless figures in bronze, installed at Hess Persson Estates, California.

“Sarcophagi in Glass Houses”, Storm King Art Center, New Windsor
1 Museum Rd, New Windsor, United States

“Sarcophagi in Glass Houses” (1989) consists of four glass house-rooms containing wooden sarcophagus-like forms.

More information: Sarcophagi in Glass Houses 

“Manus Ultimus”, Jardin des Tuileries, Paris
Jardin des Tuileries, Paris, France

“Manus Ultimus” (1997), from the “Hand Trees” series, is cast in bronze. Its Latin title, meaning “the last hand”, invites associations with a vertical human forearm or a hollowed tree trunk devoid of branches. Acquired by the French state, it was installed in the Tuileries Gardens in 2020.

More information: Manus Ultimus 
Information compiled by: Paweł Drabarczyk vel Grabarczyk

“Dragon Space”, Olympic Park, Seoul
424 Olympic-ro, Seoul, South Korea

“Dragon Space” (1988) comprises ten bronze elements that schematically and metaphorically evoke animal heads. Each unit resembles a right-angled triangle, the lower perpendicular forming the base. They all have a rough surface and form a compact group oriented in a single direction. Each measures approximately 220 cm high and 450 cm long.

More information: Dragon Space 

“Space of Unknown Development”, Europos Parkas, Joneikiškės
Europos Parkas, Joneikiškės, Lithuania

“Space of Unknown Development” (1998) is a group of twenty-two large rounded concrete forms located in Europos Parkas.