Art Smith (jeweler): Difference between revisions
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[[File:Art smith, spirali in diminuzione, 1958 ca.jpg|thumb|Spiral necklace, 1958 ca.]] |
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'''Arthur George "Art" Smith''' (1917–1982) was one of the leading modernist jewelers of the mid-20th century, and one of the |
'''Arthur George "Art" Smith''' (1917–1982) was one of the leading modernist jewelers of the mid-20th century, and one of the few Afro-Caribbean people working in the field to reach international recognition. He trained at [[Cooper Union]], [[New York University|NYU]], and under [[Winifred Mason]].<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/people/18049319/ |title=Art Smith |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=17 October 2015 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title = The Jewelry of Winifred Mason|url = http://www.modernsilver.com/winifredmason.html|accessdate = 2015-10-18|publisher = Modern Silver|last = Schon|first = Marbeth|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150520013619/http://www.modernsilver.com/winifredmason.html|archive-date = 2015-05-20|url-status = dead}}</ref> |
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== Style == |
== Style == |
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[[File:Galaxy Necklace, ca. 1962.jpg|thumb|Galaxy Necklace, ca. 1962, from the collection of the [[Brooklyn Museum]]]] |
[[File:Galaxy Necklace, ca. 1962.jpg|thumb|Galaxy Necklace, ca. 1962, from the collection of the [[Brooklyn Museum]]]] |
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[[File:Art Smith "modern cuff" bracelet on model.jpg|thumb|Model wearing a Smith bracelet designed c. 1948]] |
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Smith's jewelry has been described as:<blockquote>Inspired by surrealism, biomorphicism, and primitivism ... dynamic in its size and form.<ref name=":0" /></blockquote>Many of his pieces were |
Smith's jewelry has been described as:<blockquote>Inspired by surrealism, biomorphicism, and primitivism ... dynamic in its size and form.<ref name=":0" /></blockquote>Many of his pieces were designed to be worn by avant-garde dancers, which influenced his style. The pieces were often large. Of his own work, he said:<blockquote>A piece of jewelry is in a sense an object that is not complete in itself. Jewelry is a ‘what is it?’ until you relate it to the body. The body is a component in design just as air and space are. Like line, form, and color, the body is a material to work with. It is one of the basic inspirations in creating form.<ref>{{Cite web|title = Review: From the Village to Vogue, The Modernist Jewelry of Art Smith|url = http://www.modernsilver.com/villagetovogue/villagetovogue.htm|website = Modern Silver|accessdate = 2015-10-18|last = Schrieber|first = Fran|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151113053653/http://www.modernsilver.com/villagetovogue/villagetovogue.htm|archive-date = 2015-11-13|url-status = dead}}</ref></blockquote>[[Alexander Calder]] was also an influence.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/497596|title=Art Smith {{!}} Necklace|website=The Metropolitan Museum of Art|access-date=2017-02-12}}</ref> Smith was friend and contemporary to many in the downtown New York City arts and fashion scene, such as sandal maker Barbara Shaum and Knobkerry's [[Sara Penn]].<ref>{{cite book |last1= Kitto|first1= Svetlana|author-link= |date= 2022 |title= Sara Penn's Knobkerry: An Oral History Sourcebook|url= http://www.sculpture-center.org/publications/13233/sara-penn-s-knobkerry-an-oral-history-sourcebook|location= Long Island City, NY|publisher= [[SculptureCenter]]|page= |isbn=978-1-7377186-0-4}}</ref> |
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== Biography == |
== Biography == |
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Smith was born in Cuba, after his parents emigrated there from Jamaica. They moved to New York City when he was three.<ref>{{Cite book|title = Art as Adornment: The Life and Work of Arthur George Smith|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=yKpUCwAAQBAJ|publisher = Outskirts Press|date = 2015-12-28|isbn = 9781478743156|language = en|first = Charles L.|last = Russell}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title = From the Village to Vogue: The Modernist Jewelry of Art Smith|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=O5KqNwAACAAJ|publisher = Brooklyn Museum|date = 2008-01-01|language = en}}</ref> |
Smith was born in Cuba, after his parents emigrated there from Jamaica. They moved to New York City when he was three years old.<ref>{{Cite book|title = Art as Adornment: The Life and Work of Arthur George Smith|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=yKpUCwAAQBAJ|publisher = Outskirts Press|date = 2015-12-28|isbn = 9781478743156|language = en|first = Charles L.|last = Russell}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title = From the Village to Vogue: The Modernist Jewelry of Art Smith|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=O5KqNwAACAAJ|publisher = Brooklyn Museum|date = 2008-01-01|language = en}}</ref> |
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As an adult, Smith worked in Manhattan's [[Greenwich Village]], running a shop there from 1946 until 1979 (shortly before his death). Smith was a gay |
As an adult, Smith worked in Manhattan's [[Greenwich Village]], running a shop there from 1946 until 1979 (shortly before his death). Smith was a gay Afro-Caribbean, and as a result was subject to attacks shortly after his store opened.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|title = Catalog: From the Village to Vogue: The Modernist Jewelry of Art Smith|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=O5KqNwAACAAJ|publisher = Brooklyn Museum|date = 2008-01-01|chapter-url = http://artsmithjewelry.com/as20.html|chapter = Biography}}</ref> A fan of jazz and modern dance, he was personally acquainted with musicians of the period including [[Lena Horne]], [[Harry Belafonte]], [[Eartha Kitt]] and [[Talley Beatty]].<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web|title = Obituary: Art Smith|url = http://www.925-1000.com/amx_smithA.html|website = www.925-1000.com|accessdate = 2015-10-18|date = 1982-03-06|last = Tapley|first = Mel|publisher = New Amsterdam News}}</ref> |
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Smith died in 1982 of heart disease.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.vnews.com/Articles/2016/03/From-Archives/ArtNotes-ns-vn-031016|title=Art Notes: Lebanon Resident’s Book Memorializes Pioneering Jewelry Designer’s Legacy|last=Smith|first=Nicola|date=2016-03-10|newspaper=Valley News|access-date=2017-02-12 |
Smith died in 1982 of heart disease.<ref name=":2">{{Cite news|url=http://www.vnews.com/Articles/2016/03/From-Archives/ArtNotes-ns-vn-031016|title=Art Notes: Lebanon Resident’s Book Memorializes Pioneering Jewelry Designer’s Legacy|last=Smith|first=Nicola|date=2016-03-10|newspaper=Valley News|access-date=2017-02-12}}</ref> |
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== Exhibitions and holdings == |
== Exhibitions and holdings == |
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During his life, Smith's work was featured in Vogue and Harper's Bazaar, and exhibited at the [[Museum of Arts and Design|Museum of Contemporary Crafts]].<ref name=":1" /> Posthumously, Smith's work was the subject of an exhibition at the [[Brooklyn Museum]] in 2008-2011,<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title = From the Village to Vogue: The Modernist Jewelry of Art Smith|url = https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/art_smith/|accessdate = 2015-10-18|publisher = Brooklyn Museum}}</ref> and is held in the permanent collection of the [[Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum|Cooper Hewitt Museum]], [[Museum of Arts and Design|Museum of Art and Design]], and [[Museum of Fine Arts, Boston|Boston Museum of Fine Arts]].<ref name="CH" /><ref>{{Cite web|title = Arthur Smith|url = http://collections.madmuseum.org/code/emuseum.asp?emu_action=searchrequest&moduleid=2&profile=people¤trecord=1&searchdesc=Arthur%2520Smith&style=single&rawsearch=constituentid/,/is/,/1252/,/false/,/true|accessdate = 2015-10-18|publisher = Museum of Arts and Design Collection Database}}</ref> |
During his life, Smith's work was featured in Vogue and Harper's Bazaar, and exhibited at the [[Museum of Arts and Design|Museum of Contemporary Crafts]].<ref name=":1" /> Posthumously, Smith's work was the subject of an exhibition at the [[Brooklyn Museum]] in 2008-2011,<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title = From the Village to Vogue: The Modernist Jewelry of Art Smith|url = https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/art_smith/|accessdate = 2015-10-18|publisher = Brooklyn Museum}}</ref> and is held in the permanent collection of the [[Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum|Cooper Hewitt Museum]], [[Museum of Arts and Design|Museum of Art and Design]], and [[Museum of Fine Arts, Boston|Boston Museum of Fine Arts]].<ref name="CH" /><ref>{{Cite web|title = Arthur Smith|url = http://collections.madmuseum.org/code/emuseum.asp?emu_action=searchrequest&moduleid=2&profile=people¤trecord=1&searchdesc=Arthur%2520Smith&style=single&rawsearch=constituentid/,/is/,/1252/,/false/,/true|accessdate = 2015-10-18|publisher = Museum of Arts and Design Collection Database|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160624195551/http://collections.madmuseum.org/code/emuseum.asp?emu_action=searchrequest&moduleid=2&profile=people¤trecord=1&searchdesc=Arthur%20Smith&style=single&rawsearch=constituentid%2F%2C%2Fis%2F%2C%2F1252%2F%2C%2Ffalse%2F%2C%2Ftrue|archive-date = 2016-06-24|url-status = dead}}</ref> |
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One piece of Smith's sold for $22,000,<ref name=":2" /> and a cufflink collector told the New York Times that Smith's cufflinks were the most expensive pieces in his collection.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/22/arts/design/when-form-meets-function-cuff-links-throughout-the-centuries.html|title=When Form Meets Function: Cuff Links Throughout the Centuries|last=Kahn|first=Eve M.|date=2016-07-21|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=2017-02-13|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> |
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== References == |
== References == |
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{{Reflist}} |
{{Reflist|2}} |
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== External links == |
== External links == |
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* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGQqfY4bZ6A Video of Brooklyn Museum exhibition] |
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGQqfY4bZ6A Video of Brooklyn Museum exhibition] |
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* [http://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/interviews/oral-history-interview-art-smith-11454 Oral history interview with Art Smith, 1971 August 24-31, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.] |
* [http://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/interviews/oral-history-interview-art-smith-11454 Oral history interview with Art Smith, 1971 August 24-31, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.] |
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* [http://www.archivedauctions.com/s/301525/art-smith-diminishing-spirals/ Prices, and images, of Smith pieces sold at auction]. |
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{{US-artist-stub}} |
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{{Authority control}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Art}} |
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Art}} |
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[[Category:Cooper Union alumni]] |
[[Category:Cooper Union alumni]] |
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[[Category:New York University alumni]] |
[[Category:New York University alumni]] |
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[[Category:American jewellers]] |
[[Category:20th-century American jewellers]] |
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[[Category:1917 births]] |
[[Category:1917 births]] |
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[[Category:1982 deaths]] |
[[Category:1982 deaths]] |
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Latest revision as of 20:08, 23 November 2024
Arthur George "Art" Smith (1917–1982) was one of the leading modernist jewelers of the mid-20th century, and one of the few Afro-Caribbean people working in the field to reach international recognition. He trained at Cooper Union, NYU, and under Winifred Mason.[1][2]
Style
[edit]
Smith's jewelry has been described as:
Inspired by surrealism, biomorphicism, and primitivism ... dynamic in its size and form.[3]
Many of his pieces were designed to be worn by avant-garde dancers, which influenced his style. The pieces were often large. Of his own work, he said:
A piece of jewelry is in a sense an object that is not complete in itself. Jewelry is a ‘what is it?’ until you relate it to the body. The body is a component in design just as air and space are. Like line, form, and color, the body is a material to work with. It is one of the basic inspirations in creating form.[4]
Alexander Calder was also an influence.[5] Smith was friend and contemporary to many in the downtown New York City arts and fashion scene, such as sandal maker Barbara Shaum and Knobkerry's Sara Penn.[6]
Biography
[edit]Smith was born in Cuba, after his parents emigrated there from Jamaica. They moved to New York City when he was three years old.[7][8]
As an adult, Smith worked in Manhattan's Greenwich Village, running a shop there from 1946 until 1979 (shortly before his death). Smith was a gay Afro-Caribbean, and as a result was subject to attacks shortly after his store opened.[9] A fan of jazz and modern dance, he was personally acquainted with musicians of the period including Lena Horne, Harry Belafonte, Eartha Kitt and Talley Beatty.[9][10]
Smith died in 1982 of heart disease.[11]
Exhibitions and holdings
[edit]During his life, Smith's work was featured in Vogue and Harper's Bazaar, and exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Crafts.[9] Posthumously, Smith's work was the subject of an exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum in 2008-2011,[3] and is held in the permanent collection of the Cooper Hewitt Museum, Museum of Art and Design, and Boston Museum of Fine Arts.[1][12]
One piece of Smith's sold for $22,000,[11] and a cufflink collector told the New York Times that Smith's cufflinks were the most expensive pieces in his collection.[13]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. "Art Smith". Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
- ^ Schon, Marbeth. "The Jewelry of Winifred Mason". Modern Silver. Archived from the original on 2015-05-20. Retrieved 2015-10-18.
- ^ a b "From the Village to Vogue: The Modernist Jewelry of Art Smith". Brooklyn Museum. Retrieved 2015-10-18.
- ^ Schrieber, Fran. "Review: From the Village to Vogue, The Modernist Jewelry of Art Smith". Modern Silver. Archived from the original on 2015-11-13. Retrieved 2015-10-18.
- ^ "Art Smith | Necklace". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 2017-02-12.
- ^ Kitto, Svetlana (2022). Sara Penn's Knobkerry: An Oral History Sourcebook. Long Island City, NY: SculptureCenter. ISBN 978-1-7377186-0-4.
- ^ Russell, Charles L. (2015-12-28). Art as Adornment: The Life and Work of Arthur George Smith. Outskirts Press. ISBN 9781478743156.
- ^ From the Village to Vogue: The Modernist Jewelry of Art Smith. Brooklyn Museum. 2008-01-01.
- ^ a b c "Biography". Catalog: From the Village to Vogue: The Modernist Jewelry of Art Smith. Brooklyn Museum. 2008-01-01.
- ^ Tapley, Mel (1982-03-06). "Obituary: Art Smith". www.925-1000.com. New Amsterdam News. Retrieved 2015-10-18.
- ^ a b Smith, Nicola (2016-03-10). "Art Notes: Lebanon Resident's Book Memorializes Pioneering Jewelry Designer's Legacy". Valley News. Retrieved 2017-02-12.
- ^ "Arthur Smith". Museum of Arts and Design Collection Database. Archived from the original on 2016-06-24. Retrieved 2015-10-18.
- ^ Kahn, Eve M. (2016-07-21). "When Form Meets Function: Cuff Links Throughout the Centuries". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-02-13.
External links
[edit]- Video of Brooklyn Museum exhibition
- Oral history interview with Art Smith, 1971 August 24-31, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
- Prices, and images, of Smith pieces sold at auction.
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