Created by
Savage, Augusta, American, 1892 - 1962
Subject of
Scott, Edythe Williams, American
Date
ca. 1931-1935
Medium
paint on plaster with wood
Dimensions
H x W x D (statue): 16 1/4 × 9 × 9 in. (41.3 × 22.9 × 22.9 cm)
H x W x D (base): 2 5/8 × 10 × 7 3/4 in. (6.7 × 25.4 × 19.7 cm)
Caption
"From the time I can first recall the rain falling on the red clay in Florida, I wanted to make things. When my brothers and sisters were making mud pies, I would be making ducks and chickens with the mud."
Augusta Savage was a highly regarded civil rights activist, educator, community leader, and artist. She came to New York in the 1920s and earned an art degree from Cooper Union. Known for her sculpture, Savage chose black models to celebrate the beauty of African American features.
Savage sculpted Nude Torso, in academic realist style, after returning from studies at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière in Paris. She modeled it after her former student, Edyth Williams Scott, also an artist and educator.
Description
A sculpture of painted plaster depicting a the torso of a nude woman. Painted a dark gold, the body is shown from mid-thigh to the neck. The figure bends slightly forward and to the right, with the left hand placed above the breast, palm flat and fingers spead. The right arm is held straight and slightly to the rear of the right side. The sculpture is mounted on a square block of dark wood.
Place made
Harlem, New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
Classification
Visual Arts
Movement
Harlem Renaissance (New Negro Movement)
Type
sculptures
Topic
Art
Women
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2014.233.2
Restrictions & Rights
Unknown – Restrictions Possible
Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd57b4f3977-ccb1-4bb4-bf99-94cd5a9df0ef

Cataloging is an ongoing process and we may update this record as we conduct additional research and review. If you have more information about this object, please contact us at NMAAHCDigiTeam@si.edu

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