Art across the Nation

A maquette is a small sculpture made as a preparatory study or model for a full-scale work, or for presentation to a client for approval.

Both Kenneth Snelson and Robert Hudson were commissioned to make art for federal buildings as part of the revival of the Government Services Administration's Art-in-Architecture program in the 1970s. The Smithsonian American Art Museum owns a number of the maquettes and studies submitted as part of the review process.

Kenneth Snelson's maquette for Tree I includes a human figure to show the scale of the piece. Snelson's full-scale construction of stainless-steel rods and cables can be found on the grounds of the National Institutes for Health in Bethesda, Maryland.

Robert Hudson's Tlingit was designed for the Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse in Anchorage, Alaska.

To locate more public art, search the museum's Inventory of American Sculpture, which includes results from Save Outdoor Sculpture, a nationwide survey of outdoor sculpture.

Pictured top: Kenneth Snelson, born 1927, Maquette for Tree I, 1979, stainless steel, 17 3/4 x 25 x 24 3/4 in., Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from General Services Administration.

Pictured bottom: Robert Hudson, born 1938, Maquette for Tlingit, 1979, steel, 31 7/8 x 15 1/8 x 12 in., Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from General Services Administration.