Cockfight
- Artist
- David Smith, American, 1906–1965
- Date
- 1945
- Material
- Steel
- Made in
- Bolton Landing, New York, United States, North and Central America
- Classification
- Sculpture
- Current Location
- On View, Gallery 333
- Dimensions
- 45 x 21 3/4 x 10 3/4 in. (114.3 x 55.2 x 27.3 cm)
- Credit Line
- Museum Purchase
- Rights
- © Estate of David Smith / Licensed by ARS, New York, NY
- Object Number
- 188:1946
NOTES
The deadly combat that locks these two roosters together can be read as an allegory for the World War II (1939–1945) battles raging in Europe at the time this sculpture was made. The roosters are silhouetted in space, their forms created through outline rather than three dimensional volume. The hand wrought steel plates point in different directions and shift behind each other—creating an energetic, explosive sense of action. The arc welded steel of “Cockfight” is a hallmark of David Smith, who worked for many years as a factory welder.
Provenance
1945 - 1946
Willard Gallery, New York, NY, USA [1]
1946 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Willard Gallery [2]
Notes:
[1] The Willard Gallery was David Smith's agent and dealer [Smith, David. "Design for Progress-Cockfight." In "David Smith," edited by Garnett McCoy. New York: Praeger Publishers, 1973, p. 61]. The Willard Gallery lent "Cockfight" to an exhibition in November 1945 ["Ten Masterpieces of Art." Glen Falls, NY: Crandall Public Library, November 3 - 19, 1945, cat. 10].
[2] Invoice from Willard Gallery, dated November 30, 1946 [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum St. Louis, November 7, 1946.
Willard Gallery, New York, NY, USA [1]
1946 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Willard Gallery [2]
Notes:
[1] The Willard Gallery was David Smith's agent and dealer [Smith, David. "Design for Progress-Cockfight." In "David Smith," edited by Garnett McCoy. New York: Praeger Publishers, 1973, p. 61]. The Willard Gallery lent "Cockfight" to an exhibition in November 1945 ["Ten Masterpieces of Art." Glen Falls, NY: Crandall Public Library, November 3 - 19, 1945, cat. 10].
[2] Invoice from Willard Gallery, dated November 30, 1946 [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum St. Louis, November 7, 1946.