Sculptor’s Garden

John Hultberg, Sculptor's Garden, 1968, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. David K. Anderson, Martha Jackson Memorial Collection, 1980.137.46
Copied John Hultberg, Sculptor's Garden, 1968, oil on canvas, 50 1868 in. (127.3172.7 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. David K. Anderson, Martha Jackson Memorial Collection, 1980.137.46

Artwork Details

Title
Sculptor’s Garden
Date
1968
Dimensions
50 1868 in. (127.3172.7 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. David K. Anderson, Martha Jackson Memorial Collection
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Keywords
  • Landscape — road
  • Landscape — garden
  • Object — art object — sculpture
Object Number
1980.137.46

Artwork Description

John Hultberg's paintings of imaginary environments often show strange groups of art objects and old artifacts. In Sculptor's Garden, he included paintings, easels, and other tools to suggest artists working out-of-doors. But there are no people in the image and the works on the easels appear unfinished, as if whoever was working here had to leave suddenly; the threatening clouds and desolate landscape in the distance emphasize this sense of abandonment. Hultberg wanted to infuse his landscapes with uncertainty and ambiguity, and once wrote that "I rejoice that I find in painting a way to create my own earth." (Jacks, John Hultberg: Painter of the In-Between, 1985)