David Smith: Cubes and Anarchy

Oct 6, 2011–Jan 8, 2012

Steel sculpture art by David Smith.
Steel sculpture art by David Smith.

David Smith (1906–1965), Zig III, 1961 (detail). Painted steel, 93 x 124 x 61 inches (236.2 x 315.0 x 154.9 cm). The Estate of David Smith, New York; courtesy Gagosian Gallery. © The Estate of David Smith/VAGA, New York. Photograph by Jerry L. Thompson

A fresh look at the work of the great American sculptor David Smith (1906–1965), Cubes and Anarchy offers new insights into the artist’s career-long involvement with geometric forms. Traditionally, the simplified geometry of Smith's monumental Cubi and Zig sculptures of the 1960s has been seen as a departure from the Surrealist and Expressionistic tendencies of his earlier work. Cubes and Anarchy reveals the artist’s iconic late masterpieces to be continuations of his long-standing explanation of geometric abstraction. The show includes over fifty sculptures, drawings, and paintings, as well as rarely-seen sketchbooks and photographs. Following its presentation at the Whitney, David Smith: Cubes and Anarchy will travel to the Wexner Center for the Arts, Columbus, Ohio. 

This exhibition was organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Major support for the Whitney’s presentation is provided by the National Committee of the Whitney Museum of American Art.

Events

View all

On the Hour

A 30-second online art project:
Maya Man, A Realistic Day In My Life Living In New York City

Learn more about this project

Learn more at whitney.org/artport

On the Hour projects can contain motion and sound. To respect your accessibility settings autoplay is disabled.