1892 - 1963
Maldarelli came to the United States with his family in 1900. He studied at Cooper Union from 1911 to 1914, and again in 1916. In the same years he was a student at the Academy school, studying with Kroll, Hermon MacNeil, and Ivan Olinsky. He also had some instruction at the Beaux Arts Institute, in New York, and then was abroad. Upon his return to the United States, he settled in New York, and worked as a designer of jewelry. In 1929 he exhibited pastel drawings, preparatory sketches for sculptures at the Grand Central Art Galleries, New York. In 1933, upon completion of two years study abroad on a Guggenheim Fellowship, he exhibited the work of this period at the Midtown Galleries, New York. Subsequent exhibitions at Midtown included one devoted to hammered metal masks and framed reliefs, 1934, and one devoted to images of the female figure, 1948.
His major works include: the marble statue of Our Lady of New York in St. Patrick's Cathedral; the black marble bird bath in Central Park, New York; three marble reliefs for Queens (New York) College Library; and the facade sculpture for the Hartford (Connecticut) Public Library. In 1947 his The Spirit of Youth, a playground centerpiece, was installed at the James Weldon Johnson Houses in East Harlem.
Among Maldarelli's awards and honors were: first prize, Fairmount Park Art Association, Philadelphia, 1929; Guggenheim Fellowships, 193l and 1943; American Academy of Arts and Letters medal, 1948; George D. Widener Memorial Gold Medal, 195l; Garden Sculpture Prize, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, 1953; New York Architectural League silver medals for sculpture, 1954 and 1956. He served as a trustee of the American Academy in Rome, and on the advisory commission of the Guggenheim Memorial Foundation.
Maldarelli taught at Cooper Union, Sarah Lawrence College, and at Columbia University from 1937 to 1961. He made his residence in New York's Greenwich Village, and maintained a summer home and studio in Townsend, Vermont. A memorial exhibition of his work was held at the Rosenberg Gallery, New York, in 1963.
His major works include: the marble statue of Our Lady of New York in St. Patrick's Cathedral; the black marble bird bath in Central Park, New York; three marble reliefs for Queens (New York) College Library; and the facade sculpture for the Hartford (Connecticut) Public Library. In 1947 his The Spirit of Youth, a playground centerpiece, was installed at the James Weldon Johnson Houses in East Harlem.
Among Maldarelli's awards and honors were: first prize, Fairmount Park Art Association, Philadelphia, 1929; Guggenheim Fellowships, 193l and 1943; American Academy of Arts and Letters medal, 1948; George D. Widener Memorial Gold Medal, 195l; Garden Sculpture Prize, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, 1953; New York Architectural League silver medals for sculpture, 1954 and 1956. He served as a trustee of the American Academy in Rome, and on the advisory commission of the Guggenheim Memorial Foundation.
Maldarelli taught at Cooper Union, Sarah Lawrence College, and at Columbia University from 1937 to 1961. He made his residence in New York's Greenwich Village, and maintained a summer home and studio in Townsend, Vermont. A memorial exhibition of his work was held at the Rosenberg Gallery, New York, in 1963.
