Washington Crossing the Delaware: George Washington

Copied Alex Katz, Washington Crossing the Delaware: George Washington, 1961, wood, 73 7⁄8 x 39 7⁄8 x 6 3⁄8 in. (187.8 x 101.3 x 16.2 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Aaron Kozak, 1982.121

Artwork Details

Title
Washington Crossing the Delaware: George Washington
Artist
Date
1961
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
73 7⁄8 x 39 7⁄8 x 6 3⁄8 in. (187.8 x 101.3 x 16.2 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Aaron Kozak
Mediums
Mediums Description
wood
Classifications
Subjects
  • History — United States — Revolution
  • Dress — uniform — military uniform
  • Portrait male — Washington, George — knee length
  • Object — weapon — sword
  • Occupation — military — general
  • Waterscape — river — Delaware River
Object Number
1982.121
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1982.121

Artwork Description

In 1959, Alex Katz began painting figures on canvas, cutting them out and then pasting them onto wooden boards. Two years later the playwright Kenneth Koch saw an exhibition of these and asked Katz to produce the props and sets for his one-act play George Washington Crossing the Delaware. In Koch's satire, Washington’s famous crossing was motivated by his childhood when, after cutting down the cherry tree, the young Washington swam across a river to avoid his father's wrath. The play became an underground hit largely because of Katz's irreverent image of Washington. At the time, art critic Irving Sandler described the cutouts as "the perfect setting for the delivery of such lines as the following from the father of our country: 'I am tired and I need sleep. Good night America.'"