Erte - In The Arctic Sea

Erte bronze sculptures, paintings, and other famous artwork have come to represent an artist, a style, and two distinct periods in American history. Considered the founder of the art deco movement and the 1920 and 1930s and the father of the art deco resurgence of the 1960s, Erte art experienced two distinct periods of widespread critical acclaim and public appreciation. Famous for his iconic drawings, paintings, etchings, prints, and bronze sculptures, Erte was a master of many mediums.

One of Erte’s most famous works is his Arctic Sea. This image was captured as a famous Erte painting as well as a bronze sculpture. It depicts a beautiful woman standing with her lower body draped in a cloak that appears to be a wave. On her head is the tip of the wave to one side is an extravagant head piece that appears jeweled. Its position and shape harkens images of a sail. The woman’s neck is draped in beautiful necklace. In images where her face can be seen, she has a serious, stern expression.

Erte’s Arctic Sea is so famous because it clearly shows the roots of Erte’s fashion design background. Erte’s work in fashion launched his artistic career. The artist began working with Harper’s Bazaar magazine in 1913. During his career, he designed over 240 covers and also worked with other popular magazines of the times including Vogue and Cosmopolitan. He went on to create costumes for Broadway actresses and dancers. His fashion sensibility, known as art deco, went on to influence fashion, art, and architecture. It defined the year in which he first began his career, and later came into popularity again through an art deco resurgence movement in the 1960s lead by the artist himself. The way the woman in Erte’s famous image Arctic Sea is pictured captures this art deco style and design sensibility perfectly. The way she holds the draped fabric over her lower body like a wave and the use of her extravagant headpiece as a sail shows that Erte is confident in his ability to manipulate fashion and design for his desired artistic outcome. The long lines and beautiful fashion element highlight the artistry that defined Erte throughout his long career.

Arctic Sea’s popularity is perhaps catapulted because it was an image that resurfaced throughout Erte’s career. Appearing first in 1925 in an Erte Painting, the image would be reproduced in other paintings, sculptures, and prints throughout his prolific career. The last incarnation was in an Erte bronze sculpture created in 1988, two years prior to the artist’s death.

Erte’s Artic Sea has become so iconic because it is quintessentially Erte. It defines the artist and his career. The widespread use of the image throughout his career, from the early stages to near his death, shows that it serves as a symbol he kept coming back to. Its use in many forms, for Erte paintings to prints to paintings also shows the wide range the artist had. It also perfectly captures Erte’s background in fashion and the art deco style for which he is famous for creating. Because of this, Erte’s Arctic Sea has become a perfect representation of the artist and has gone on to become one of his most popular works as a result.