Nationality American Name Dimitri Hadzi Style Abstract Education Cooper Union (1950) | Spouse(s) Martha Leeb Books Alphaveta Elected 1990 | |
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Born March 21, 1921 ( 1921-03-21 ) New York City Known for 1957 Guggenheim Fellow, showed at the 1962 Venice biennale, won a 1974 Rome Prize Notable work Centaur, Propylaea, River Legend Died April 16, 2006, Boston, Massachusetts, United States Awards Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts, US & Canada | ||
Danese corey matthias meyer dimitri hadzi
Dimitri Hadzi (March 21, 1921 – April 16, 2006) was an American abstract sculptor who lived and worked in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and also taught at Harvard University for over a decade.
Contents
Life
Hadzi was born to Greek-American immigrant parents in Greenwich Village, New York City on March 21, 1921. As a child, he attended a Greek after-school program, where he learned language, mythology, history, and theater. He also won a prize for drawing. After graduating from Brooklyn Technical High School, he worked as a chemist, while continuing his studies in chemistry by night.
In 1942, he signed up for the Army Air Force, serving in the South Pacific region while continuing to draw in his spare time. After his service, he returned to New York to study painting and sculpture at Cooper Union.
Hadzi taught studio arts at Harvard University, from 1975 to 1989.
Personal life
He married Martha Leeb, but later divorced. In June 1985, he married Cynthia von Thuna.
Works
Awards
Removal of artworks
Some of Hadzi's public artworks have been removed since his death, as noted above. In addition to the named works, a 60-foot (18 m) high sculptural fountain designed by him was completely demolished and removed circa 2014, despite protests by his widow and other commentators. The artwork was the centerpiece of Boston's Copley Place indoor shopping mall, and was composed of multiple abstract granite and travertine marble shapes, with a waterfall cascading down it into a shallow pool at the bottom, surrounded by marble benches. As of 2017, the fountain had been completely removed, and the location and status of its components were unknown to the general public.