Iron Man

Samuel Yellin, dragon door knocker (1912), hand- forged iron.

The Rosenbach salutes master craftsman Samuel Yellin, the "devil with a hammer in his hand."

by Robin Rice

Metalworker Samuel Yellin (1885-1940) left an enduring mark on this country. His work can be seen in 45 states: in banks (at 200 tons, his work for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York is still the largest single decorative wrought-iron project in the United States), institutions of learning (Harvard, Yale and Princeton were among his academic clients), churches (Yellin’s 12 years of work on the National Cathedral in Washington produced a style called "Yellin Gothic"), private homes and museums.

Double doors made for the Rosenbach Museum, patterned with symmetrical, almost rococo filigree, complement a selection of plant- and animal-based Yellin Gothic work lent to the Rosenbach by the artist’s granddaughter, Clare Yellin. With the exception of a 1923 bed frame decorated with charming religious and mythical figures, made as a gift for Yellin by his workmen, everything in "Devil with a Hammer in His Hand: The Monsters of Samuel Yellin" is from Yellin’s hand or design, and all the pieces were used by him. At its height, Yellin’s workshop employed 268 workmen. Today Clare Yellin, who carries on her grandfather’s business at Arden Forge, works with only two metalsmiths. Yellin taught metalworking, and his knowledge of the field was such that he was asked to write two articles for the Encyclopaedia Britannica on the subject.

At the entrance to the gallery housing Yellin objects at the Rosenbach stands the artist's old anvil on a massive heat-blackened block of wood. Above hangs a sign more beautiful than any commercial sign you will see in Philadelphia today: "Samuel Yellin/Metal/Worker," the letters hammered and applied in contrasting metals.

Although he was Jewish, Yellin executed many commissions for Christian institutions and once quipped that if St. Peter refused to give him a key to heaven, he would forge one himself. Gates, railings, fences, doors, locks and keys comprise his main body of work, though he made just about everything possible from iron, including lamps, torchéres, fire screens and fireplace tools. One particularly handsome door knocker surmounted by a dragon's head on a tightly spiraled neck (1912) was used by its owner as a towel ring.

Several doors mounted in the exhibition display the range of Yellin's technical mastery. The cold-worked repoussé panels for the door to his personal room in his shop (1915) illustrate the history of metalwork. Various hot techniques can be seen in lattices and curling interlaced screens. One lock with a handle and key is mounted in a Plexiglas case so that visitors can turn the key and see how deftly Yellin could open a gate.

There is a pervasive medieval or gothic quality in this selection, with many animal grotesques -- the "monsters" of the exhibition title -- clearly descended from lacertilian Hiberno-Saxon or Viking roots. Small animal and bird studies display an intriguing contrast of observed, naturalistic gesture and fanciful animal anatomy. While some examples integrate animal and human forms into graceful medieval or Renaissance arabesques, others are characterized by more static Byzantine lattice work.

Yellin's sources were incredibly eclectic and sophisticated. His nearly superhuman skills earned him the title of "devil with a hammer in his hand." Born in Poland, Yellin was apprenticed to a local blacksmith by the age of 12. At 17, he was certified as a master metalsmith, and completed his education with a leisurely, extensive tour of Europe, working in various shops and documenting all kinds of art, particularly metalwork.

After coming to the United States in the early decades of this century, a period very conscious and respectful of the past, Yellin drew on his considerable knowledge of art history. In many ways, his respect for handwork and his encyclopedic knowledge of sources link him to an earlier, similarly driven craftsman, William Morris.

"Devil with a Hammer" is a compact, exceptionally well-designed exhibition, and particularly child-friendly. Objects are placed at a good height for viewing and more: Signs invite, "Please Touch" or "Please Touch Gently." In this context, the occasional "Please Do Not Touch" seems to acknowledge the viewer as a responsible, friendly visitor rather than a potential art molester.

Upstairs at the Rosenbach, famed illustrator Maurice Sendak, a major benefactor who has given some 9,000 items to the museum, has lent selections from two of his diverse collections. "Enchanted Tableaus: Nineteenth-Century Photographs" consists of very early photos, and most are so fragile and light-sensitive that very dim lights are turned on only when visitors are in the galleries. Several images, including Sendak's favorite, the haunting Lady in Open Window with Bird Cage (late 1840s) by Calvert Richard Jones, are so delicate that they are displayed behind a velvet drape to be lifted briefly for viewing. Nadar, Charles Dodgson (Lewis Carroll), Julia Margaret Cameron -- whose King Lear tableau includes Alice Liddell, Dodgson's muse -- and William Henry Fox Talbot are all represented.

Sendak’s second loan exhibition, "An Infinitude of Mouses," celebrates his "twin," Mickey Mouse. The two were born in the same year and Sendak describes Mickey as "the personification of Joy." The collection consists of charming early toys and other memorabilia from the late ’20s and early ’30s. According to the grapevine, Sendak missed his favorite toy so much that he removed it from the show.

"Devil with a Hammer in his Hand: The Monsters of Samuel Yellin"

Through Feb. 29, 2004

"Enchanted Tableaus: Nineteenth-Century Photographs from the Collection of Maurice Sendak"

Through Jan. 4, 2004

"An Infinitude of Mouses"

Through Jan. 31, 2004

Rosenbach Museum and Library, 2008-2010 Delancey Pl. , 215-732-1600