Big City Skyline

Media - 1997.124.39 - SAAM-1997.124.39_1 - 13105
Copied Jimmy Lee Sudduth, Big City Skyline, ca. 1988, paint, mud, and sand on plywood, 37 x 48 in. (94.0 x 121.9 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 1997.124.39

Artwork Details

Title
Big City Skyline
Artist
Date
ca. 1988
Location
Dimensions
37 x 48 in. (94.0 x 121.9 cm.)
Markings
upper right in pencil: Jim Sudth (sic)
Credit Line
Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment
Mediums
Mediums Description
paint, mud, and sand on plywood
Classifications
Keywords
  • Figure group
  • Cityscape
  • Architecture
  • Architecture Exterior — commercial — skyscraper
Object Number
1997.124.39
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1997.124.39

Artwork Description

Jimmy Lee Sudduth began making art as a child in his native Alabama. To create his own paints and dyes, he would collect leaves, mud, and foodstuffs, a skill he learned from his healer mother, who gathered plants from the woods to make medicines and remedies. Using his fingers as brushes, he would compose images on whatever surface was available to him, often boards from a local plywood factory. His art often depicted everyday life in Alabama, but he also created views of New York and other cities. In Big City Skyline, lines of people move toward imposing skyscrapers, emphasizing the anonymity and isolation of America’s large cities.