Lot 25
DAVID SMITH(American, 1906-1965)Diplomats: Fascist and Fascist Tending; Axis D. (from the Medals for Dishonor Series)
1938–1939
1938–1939
1 July 2020, 13:00 EDT
New YorkSold for US$35,075 inc. premium
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DAVID SMITH (American, 1906-1965)
Diplomats: Fascist and Fascist Tending; Axis D. (from the Medals for Dishonor Series)
1938–1939
incised with the artist's initials using Greek lettering; incised with the artist's signature on separate plaque
cast bronze, on original mount
Diameter of medal: 10 in.
25.4 cm.
Overall: 13 1/2 by 14 1/2 by 2 in.
34 by 37 by 5 cm.
This work was executed in 1938-1939, and is a unique variation from an edition of 3.
1938–1939
incised with the artist's initials using Greek lettering; incised with the artist's signature on separate plaque
cast bronze, on original mount
Diameter of medal: 10 in.
25.4 cm.
Overall: 13 1/2 by 14 1/2 by 2 in.
34 by 37 by 5 cm.
This work was executed in 1938-1939, and is a unique variation from an edition of 3.
Footnotes
This work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the artist's sculpture being prepared by the Estate of David Smith, New York.
Provenance
Private Collection, USA (a gift from the artist in 1946)
Thence by descent to the present owner
Literature
Jay Edgerton, 'Medals at Art Center Offer Show Everybody Can Hate' in Minneapolis Daily Times, 26 November 1941, p. 5
Rosalind Krauss, The Sculpture of David Smith: A Catalogue Raisonné, New York 1977, p. 16, no. 98, illustrated
Known primarily as an Abstract Expressionist sculptor, David Smith's Diplomats: Fascist and Fascist Rising; Axis D, 1938-1939, from his Medals for Dishonor series, represents a distinctly political moment in the artist's career, and exhibits his earlier training and skill as a draughtsman. Signed in Greek letters, Smith was inspired by the ancient Sumerian coins of the country, as well as German propaganda medals from World War I, which he saw at the British Museum in London. It was during this period spent in Europe that he saw the rise of Fascism in the continent, which inspired his small series of medals capturing the growing hysteria and outrage in Europe was it slowly descended into a period of mass conflict.
Worked on at odd hours and with unusual tools and materials, Smith packed his medals with symbolism to be deciphered: the central nude, a reference perhaps to the "new man" or a diplomacy of war, the sea lion balancing a ball, representing the circus and farce of the situation, the top-hatted Janus representing two faces of diplomacy, or the connection of Capitalism and Fascism. A notable example of political figurative art in the Pre-War period, Smith was influenced by many sources, including Surrealism and the Social Realism of the WPA. Overtly political in tone, the pre-war message of Medals for Dishonor continue to hold up over time, with their graphic and abrupt illustration of deeper political corruption remaining relevant today. Other examples from this series can be found in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, New York.