David Smith

Acquired directly from the artist

Exh. Cat., Cambridge, Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, David Smith 1906-1965, 1966, included in "The Sculpture of David Smith: A Handlist," no. 122, p. 69
Rosalind E. Krauss, The Sculpture of David Smith: A Catalogue Raisonné, New York, 1977, cat. no. 193, pp. 37-38, illustrated

This work is in very good and sound condition overall. There is evidence of light wear and handling with a few small media losses. Otherwise, there are no apparent condition problems with this work.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

David Smith's sculpture, particularly the early works produced in the 1930s and 1940s, reveals the artist's exploration of space and form through the use of line in sculpture. These works appear to be almost a pictorial exploration of the medium. Smith's early sculpture is more akin to the work of a painter or a draftsman than to the formalist volumetric sculpture favored by his contemporaries. Having grown up in the Mid-West, Smith was comfortable around machinery and soon after finishing his studies at the Art Students League in New York, he began experimenting with welding techniques to produce sculpture. It is not until 1933 that Smith began welding his first works. These early works are heavily influenced by European sculpture, particularly by Giacometti and by Picasso and González's collaborative sculptures from the late 1920s. 

The 1930s and 1940s were critical years for Smith to explore the medium. Despite the scarcity of metal brought on by the war Smith produced a great deal of sculptures during this period. The sculptures produced during this period range from figurative to the more abstract and have even been considered to border on the surreal. Between 1945 and 1946, Smith produced some of the most notable sculptures of his career. Home of the Welder and Pillar of Sunday both from 1945 are among them. They reveal an evolution for the artist, with a more mature and individual symbolic language. 

The sculptures of the mid-forties are generally small in scale due to the scarcity of metal brought on by the Second World War. Two Dancers is a beautifully lyrical example of the works produced during these two years. The strong diagonal lines evoke the finery of a perfectly synchronized couple dancing. Smith was no stranger to the world of Modern dance. Dorothy Dehner studied with Martha Graham and it is likely that she introduced Smith to the famed dancer and choreographer. Deborah Jowitt, author and principal dance critic for The Village Voice, explores Smith's interest and collaboration with modern dance and points to the many sketches by the artist from the 1930s and 1940s which were based of photographs on a dancing Martha Graham taken by Barbara Morgan. She elaborates on the subject: "Like Graham's choreography, Smith's sculptures affirm gravity, yet also strain against or fly away from it. Graham emphasized the challenge of maintaining equilibrium by counter-tension or torque within a fall; Smith created in a stable object the possibility of collapse, the delicacy of balance." Two Dancers is charged with the sublime dichotomy between the masculine and tough associations of the welded steel and the feminine subject and the organic rendering the lines in this sculpture.