At A Glance
Please note that the courtyard where the sculpture is located is now enclosed, but the artwork is visible from a distance
Artist Gaston Lachaise’s sculpture celebrated the female form
The original Floating Woman was installed in the Museum of Modern Art in New York
A second casting was secured in 1963 for the Society Hill Town House Development
Gaston Lachaise introduced a certain vitality and sensuality in American sculpture through the celebration of the female form. The exaggerated physical features of some of his works reflect a marked influence of prehistoric art. The original Floating Woman was modeled in 1927, cast 1934-35, and installed in the Museum of Modern Art in New York. A second casting was secured in 1963 for the Society Hill Town House Development designed by architect I. M. Pei and sponsored by the Alcoa Corporation and the city’s Redevelopment Authority.
Adapted from Public Art in Philadelphia by Penny Balkin Bach (Temple University Press, Philadelphia, 1992).
