Clamdigger (de Kooning)

Coordinates: 38°53′21″N 77°01′23″W / 38.889111°N 77.023064°W / 38.889111; -77.023064
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Clamdigger (1976)

Clamdigger is a bronze sculpture by Willem de Kooning.[1] It may have been inspired by "the men who dug for clams along the beaches" near his home in East Hampton, New York.[2] It has been described as one of his "extraordinarily tactile figurative sculptures" that "seemed pulled from the primordial ooze,"[3] and "as part man, part creature of the mud and the shallows."[4]

The sculpture was modeled in clay in 1972, and cast in bronze in 1976. It was his "first large-scale bronze work."[5]

As of 2014, Clamdigger is on display in the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden.[6]

De Kooning, known for his abstract expressionist paintings, took up sculpture later in his career, after a 1969 visit with a friend in Italy "who had a small foundry."[7]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Clamdigger, (sculpture)". SIRIS
  2. ^ "Clamdigger, the Beloved". Art&Seek. 2008-09-22. Retrieved 2014-05-06.
  3. ^ Stevens, Mark (2014-10-21). "Willem de Kooning Still Dazzles". Smithsonian Magazine, Arts & Culture. Retrieved 2014-05-06.
  4. ^ Russell, John (1983-05-20). "Art: The Sculpture of Willem de Kooning". Retrieved 2014-05-06.
  5. ^ "Secondary Object". Museumland. 2014. Retrieved 2014-05-06.
  6. ^ "Collection Search - Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden - Smithsonian". Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden - Smithsonian. Archived from the original on 2009-04-13. Retrieved 2011-04-11.
  7. ^ "BAM/PFA - Art Exhibitions - Willem de Kooning". MATRIX 12. Archived from the original on 2014-05-06. Retrieved 2014-05-06.

External links[edit]

38°53′21″N 77°01′23″W / 38.889111°N 77.023064°W / 38.889111; -77.023064