The Artists: Albin Polasek
Sculptor Albin Polasek was born in 1879 in Frenštát, Moravia (now the Czech Republic). He apprenticed as a woodcarver in Vienna and immigrated to the United States in 1901. After working in the Midwest for nearly four years, Polasek finally began his formal training at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia. In 1910, Polasek won the Prix de Rome competition, spending three years at the American Academy of Art in Rome. Once he completed his studies in Italy, Polasek moved to New York City and set up a studio there. In 1916, the Art Institute of Chicago invited him to head its sculpture department, where he remained for nearly 30 years.
In 1949, Polasek retired to Winter Park, Florida, building a home on Lake Osceola. In spite of suffering a stroke in 1950 that left him confined to a wheelchair and his left side paralyzed, Polasek continued to paint, draw, sculpt clay, and carve wood, creating a total of 18 major works before his death in 1965. In 1961, Polasek established the Polasek Foundation, designating his personal galleries, chapel, and gardens as a museum. Each year, thousands of local and international guests come to Winter Park to visit Polasek’s historic home and studio at the Albin Polasek Museum & Sculpture Gardens. Polasek’s works can be found in Europe, all over the United States, and locally in Winter Park and Orlando.
Polasek will also be featured in Art Legends exhibitions at the City of Orlando Terrace Gallery (October 15, 2015 through January 8, 2016).
