Big Figures OR Thing About Me #27

Walking Men, originally uploaded by kate e. did.

Every time I go to a modern art gallery, I search for pieces by David Smith. Artists are not supposed to have mundane names like "David Smith."

A few of his pieces were in the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo and it always struck me as incredibly funny that a man with such a name was creating modern art. I think there were also a few of his sculptures in the Hirshhorn Museum in DC.

The sculpture pictured above is not by David Smith, but rather an artist with a much more artistic name, Magdalena Abakanowicz. The piece is entitled "Big Figures" and stands in front of the Princeton University Art Gallery. Apparently, there was quite a bit of controversy when the sculpture was first installed, but that has all quieted down.

If you're ever in Princeton, it's truly worth a look. Twenty figures around seven feet tall, just marching.