THE BUST OF ‘ABDU’L-BAHÁ
BY MRS. STANNARD
THE Sculptor, Nicolas Sokolnitsky, is a Russian of the Ukraine—his natal town Kiev. He has lived in Paris many years and possesses French naturalization papers. He creates original works of Art and has accomplished many successful portrait busts and small statues.
It was during the summer of 1936 when some of us, belonging to the Bahá’í group of Paris, came in touch with a few people forming a Catholic international religious group. One or two of these came to Bahá’í meetings at Mrs. Scott’s and among them was the sister of Nicolas Sokolnitsky, the sculptor.
From this link came invitations to visit their private gatherings and to discuss religious questions as between Christianity and Islám.
I and some of the Íránian students followed this up and a few profitable meetings took place through which we became acquainted with the sculptor himself.
He seemed to take an immediate interest in the principles of the Cause and begged us to come and discuss these matters at his studio. He received us with great hospitality and after hearing our convictions stood up and holding a French translation of one of Bahá’u’lláh’s works which I had lent him, declared himself frankly as one who had instinctively held to such teachings for many years. He believed that the world was rapidly approaching the time when such a spiritual outlook would be generally felt.
It was on one of these occasions when inspecting some of Sokolnitsky’s works as he stood by, that I happened to make the remark, "It is a thousand pities that the great French sculptor Rodin never met the Master when he was in Paris.” He of all men one felt would have appreciated the great beauty of his majestic head and its pure prophet type of outline, etc. “Téte de Prophéte” was a phrase heard more than once by the French who were privileged to meet him.
Sokolnitsky looked at me suddenly and in tones of great eagerness said, “I will do this! I can do it!” His eyes lighted up as he demanded of me what pictures or photographs I had that he could study.
The next day he came to see me and I laid out ready for his inspection all my collection of photos and prints or reproductions that I possessed. He examined these carefully and selected two or three that he thought he could use.
THE DREAM
In the early morning of that night Nicolas Sokolnitsky had a vision. It was about noon the next day that I was called to the telephone and his voice in agitated excited tones came through begging me to come to his studio as soon as I could and see what he had done and to tell me something very particular.
Thinking he needed some essential information for his work, immediately I put aside some work I was engaged in and left for his studio as soon as I could.
To my amazement he uncovered the wet cloth wrapped round a large sized clay bust and I looked on the completed head of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. It was in the rough stage but the likeness to me was unmistakable.
As I stared in astonishment, he laughed and said, “Yes, some sculptors would say it was almost miraculous.”
Then he drew me aside and told me with many touches of descriptive details the following: "The same night that I had the portraits you lent me—it must have been between four and five in the morning—I had a dream so vivid and real of a figure in white standing before me and I saw, I am sure, the Íránian Master. He had the turban and white beard and he stretched out a hand
The sculptor, Nicolas Sokolnitsky, at work on a bust of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in his Paris studio.
to me and then in Russian said, ‘Rise and speak of me.’ ”
The effect was so great that on waking directly after, he rose and getting materials together he worked then and there for four or five hours without stopping.
