The Wrestlers

Manship was a sculptor whose career spanned much of the twentieth century. Although he dealt with traditional, often classical themes, his mature style - as seen in such works as Prometheus at Rockefeller Center in New York City — exudes a sleek, streamlined modernity.

Manship began his training at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. As a theme, wrestlers appeared early in Manship's work: a 1908 bronze sketch survives, which suggests the influence of Rodin. This bronze one of an edition of six cast in 1915, is more completely realized in terms of its naturalism, and its reference to antiquity. Having won the prestigious American Prix de Rome, Manship studied in Italy from 1909 to 1913, during which time he was especially drawn to archaic Greek art. The Wrestlers reflects this interest: its context is clearly antique, given the subjects' nudity and stylized hair. With their faces downturned, however, these anonymous figures, locked in battle, could be from any age.

Manship's career flourished in the 1920s. His naturalism, so evident in the taut musculature of The Wrestlers, gradually became more stylized. Having taken part in the very exhibition that gave the world the term "Art Deco" (the 1925 Paris Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes), Manship's work is often associated with this artistic movement.