Edward Melcarth (American, 1914-1973)

I have a close friend now in his late 60's who was Edward Melcarth's roommate for many years. There are at least four things that are worth noting:

1. While it is true that Edward was born in Kentucky, it would probably be more accurate to say that his major associations were New York City and Italy. New York City was the city where he lived the longest and where many of his models were from. He moved to Italy rather permanently in 1969. He died of cancer in 1973 in Venice.

2. Most of his works were purchased by Malcolm Forbes and later his son. Many are held in the Forbes Magazine Collection/Forbes Gallery in New York. Some very interesting anecdotes here but none that should be posted.

3. Possibly, his most famous sculpture is "The Burning Man" which was originally purchased by Harvard University and to the best of my knowledge remains in the Boston area, possibly at the Boston Museum of Art if not still at Harvard.

4. To my recent surprise, my friend provided me with a book on Melcarth. There is a biography of him. It is entitled: "Edward Melcarth - A Hercynian Memoir" by Virgil Burnett, Pasdeloup Press, 1995, Stratford, Ontario. On its cover is a picture of the "Burning Man" with no credit. I suspect there is no credit because the picture was taken without the museum's knowledge but as it was published in Ontario, it was a minor issue.