Ivan Meštrovic Croatian sculptor who narrowly escaped death at the hands of the Nazis thanks to the personal intercession of the Pope

Ivan Meštrović (August 15, 1883 January 16, 1962) is a famous Croatian sculptor of the twentieth century, an outstanding master of monumental fine art. He was also a talented architect and writer, and at the dawn of his professional career he painted oil paintings many times. The artist’s work was highly appreciated by his contemporaries not only in his homeland, but also far beyond its borders, and his biography is full of interesting events.

Throughout his life, Ivan Meštrovich traveled a lot around the world and enthusiastically studied the works of great sculptors of various eras. In his works, he uniquely combined elements of all kinds of art styles: from Antiquity and Renaissance to Art Nouveau and Symbolism.

Biography

Ivan Meštrovic was born on August 15, 1883 in the village of Vrpolje in eastern Croatia into an ordinary peasant family, but the future sculptor spent his childhood in the village of Otavice, near Split, where his father and mother were from. From an early age, Ivan loved to listen to folk tales, ballads and songs, which had a huge impact on the formation of his personality.

The boy showed early aptitude for art; he enjoyed carving and painting with great pleasure. Fortunately, his talent was noticed in time by the Split sculptor Pavao Bilinić, who took the 16-year-old boy as an apprentice to his workshop. Under the guidance of an experienced mentor, Ivan quickly mastered the basics of sculpture, and Bilinich’s wife, who worked as a high school teacher, helped the young man fill in the gaps in his education.

Impressed by the bright talent of his student, Bilinich found a rich sponsor who agreed to pay for Ivan’s education at the Vienna Academy of Arts. And in 1901, Meštrovich ended up in the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, where he lived for the next seven years.

At first, studying at the academy was very difficult for a talented guy, since he absolutely did not speak German. But Ivan, who really wanted to become a professional artist, quickly coped with these difficulties and by the end of the first year he had learned to speak fluent German. In 1904, Ivan Meštrovich married Rosa Klein, with whom he lived for almost 20 years in marriage.

At first, the relationship between the spouses was good, but later they cooled to each other and divorced, although they remained friends. They never had children, which is probably the main reason for the breakup.

Already in 1905, Meštrović, who at that time was passionate about modernist art, took part for the first time in the Vienna Art Exhibition, where he was invited by members of the Secession group. The works of the young author were highly appreciated by critics and from that moment he gained popularity among the public. At the same time, Meštrovic got the first private orders, and he began to earn decent money.

Nevertheless, in 1908, immediately after graduating from the academy, Ivan and his wife moved to Paris, which at the beginning of the twentieth century was considered the main center of contemporary art. In the French capital, he rented a studio and created over 50 sculptures over the course of two years. The Paris stage of his career brought international recognition to Meštrovic, and at the 1911 World Exhibition, the young sculptor won a gold medal.

From France, the artist went to Belgrade in the same year, but lived there for only a few months, and then moved to Rome, where he became interested in studying ancient culture.

In Italy, he met the beginning of the First World War, during which he actively advocated the creation of an independent state of the southern Slavs.

Despite the horrors of the carnage that rocked Europe for four years, Meštrovic led a very prosperous life. His works took part in international exhibitions, and the author himself soon moved to London, where he took an active part in the work of the Yugoslavian Committee.

At the end of the First World War in December 1918, the independent Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was formed. Finally, the artist, who by that time had divorced his first wife, was able to return to his homeland. Soon he met a new love Olga Kesterchanek, with whom he lived until his death. In the second marriage, the sculptor had four children two daughters (Marta and Maria) and two sons (Tvrtko and Mate).

The famous master became a professor at the Higher School of Arts in Zagreb, the most successful and fruitful stage of his creative career began. The artist traveled a lot around the world and everywhere his work was a great success. Despite numerous invitations to stay in this or that country, he always returned to Croatia, which he loved very much.

Now in Yugoslavia, the communists were in power, who persistently urged the master to return. But Ivan Meshtrovich was not a supporter of Lenin’s ideas and decided to leave for the United States. He lived in America until the end of his life, visiting Croatia only once in July 1959. During this last trip, the sovereign ruler of Yugoslavia, Joseph Broz Tito, spoke personally with the artist three times, persuading him to stay, but did not achieve what he wanted.

The last years of his life, the great sculptor lived with his wife in the small town of South Bend in Indiana. And on January 16, 1962, Ivan Meštrovich died at the age of 78. According to the last will of the master, eight days after his death, his body found its last refuge in the family mausoleum in the Church of the Most Holy Redeemer in Otavitsy.

The most famous works of Ivan Meštrovich

The brilliant Croatian sculptor created many wonderful masterpieces that brought him worldwide fame. And yet, some of the most famous works of Ivan Meštrovich include:

• The Well of Life (1905) is a work installed at the entrance to the Croatian State Theater in Zagreb. The artist symbolically depicted figures of people at different stages of life around the well. “Archer” and
• The Spearman (1928) Two bronze sculptures of Indians on horseback adorning the entrance to Chicago’s Grand Park. Despite the characteristic names, the author deliberately depicted the soldiers without weapons in their hands, so that the audience could themselves, with the power of imagination, complement the integrity of the overall picture.
• Pobednik (1928) is a monument dedicated to the liberation of Serbia from the long-term Ottoman yoke. On it, a man proudly towers over the Belgrade fortress, holding a sword in one hand and an eagle in the other.
• Monument to the Unknown Hero (1938) a huge mausoleum erected on the top of Mount Avala in Belgrade. This masterpiece is a tribute to all Yugoslav soldiers who died during the Second World War. Ivan Meštrovic is considered to be the most famous Croatian sculptor of all time. He has lived a long and eventful life, creating unique works of art for the delight of people.