A bronze sculpture of a stylized figure standing on a square base. The figure features a series of rounded shapes for its torso and head, with slender legs. In the background, there are trees and a modern building with large windows. The setting is an outdoor area with grass.

Sorel Etrog, Steptease, 1976, bronze, edition 2/7. SFU Art Collection. Gift of the artist, 2009.

Dale Northey
A bronze sculpture of a stylized figure standing on a square base. The figure features a series of rounded shapes for its torso and head, with slender legs. In the background, there are trees and a modern building with large windows. The setting is an outdoor area with grass.
A modern abstract sculpture made of metal, featuring geometric shapes and smooth curves. The piece includes a tall, angular form, a rounded base, and cylindrical elements, all resting on a rectangular pedestal. The background consists of green grass and blurred shrubbery, characteristic of an outdoor setting.
A bronze abstract sculpture stands on a textured stone pedestal. The sculpture features a dynamic form with geometric shapes, including curved and angular elements. It is set against a backdrop of large glass windows and green grass, emphasizing its artistic structure and the surrounding environment.

Title

Crusader II, Ritual Head, and Steptease

Artist

Sorel Etrog

Year

1976

Medium

Bronze

Edition Info

Edition 4/7, Edition 3/5, and Edition 2/7

Collection

SFU Art Collection

Donor

Gift of the Artist

The three bronze statues installed in Saywell Courtyard are by Sorel Etrog, a Romanian-Canadian artist known for his large, abstract sculptures. Commencing his studies in Israel in the early 1950s and subsequently moving to New York, Etrog’s visual language was forged through interests in Surrealism and close study of anthropological collections held in New York museums. Etrog moved to Toronto in 1963 where he established himself as a prominent figure within Canadian modern art. His forms register as levers, hinges and blades, but also resonate as limbs and lobes — articulating correlations between body and machine, but also mind and matter, memory and language.  

Artists

Sorel Etrog (1933–2014) represented Canada at the 1966 Venice Biennale and his work has been included in shows at Carnegie International (Washington, D.C.), Museum of Modern Art (New York, NY), Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (New York, NY), and The Centre Pompidou (Paris, France). Another public work by Etrog entitled King and Queen is permanently installed at Harbour Green Park in Vancouver's Coal Harbour.