concept:era contemporary

Cubi XII

Name: Provenio Provenance Knowledge Graph
License: https://provenio.art/terms

Stainless steel sculpture by David Smith, 1963. 274.6 × 127 × 66 cm. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC. Part of Smith's final and most celebrated series of 28 works using burnished stainless steel geometric forms.

Scholarly Significance

American sculpture — David Smith's Cubi series is the definitive bridge between AbEx and Minimalism.

Notes

·The Cubi series (1961–1965) consists of 28 works; Smith was killed before completing the series.
·Stainless steel surfaces are burnished with an angle grinder to create scintillating, light-catching textures.
·The geometric stacking of cubes and cylinders in Cubi works recalls architectonic construction but preserves AbEx kinetic energy through the cantilevered, seemingly precarious arrangements.
·Smith intended the Cubi works to be seen outdoors, against sky and landscape; several are sited permanently at major sculpture parks.
·Major Cubi works are held at: Tate Modern, MoMA, National Gallery of Art Washington, Hirshhorn Museum, and the Israel Museum Jerusalem.