Cowboy Boots

William Wilhelmi, Cowboy Boots, 1980, slip-cast, airbrushed-underglaze and glazed porcelain with gold lusters, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1981.107A-B
William Wilhelmi, Cowboy Boots, 1980, slip-cast, airbrushed-underglaze and glazed porcelain with gold lusters, left boot: 14 1410 144 in. (36.226.010.2 cm) right boot: 14 1410 144 18 in. (36.226.010.5 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1981.107A-B

Artwork Details

Title
Cowboy Boots
Date
1980
Dimensions
left boot: 14 1410 144 in. (36.226.010.2 cm) right boot: 14 1410 144 18 in. (36.226.010.5 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of the artist
Mediums Description
slip-cast, airbrushed-underglaze and glazed porcelain with gold lusters
Classifications
Subjects
  • Landscape — desert
  • Landscape — weather — cloud
  • Landscape — celestial — star
  • Landscape — plant — cactus
Object Number
1981.107A-B

Artwork Description

Bill Wilhelmi designed this pair of porcelain cowboy boots specifically for the Renwick Gallery show, American Porcelain: New Expressions in an Ancient Art. The artist was inspired to begin casting ceramic cowboy boots after seeing a collection of authentic footwear. This pair of boots is unique because it was the first that Wilhelmi modeled in porcelain. They were cast from an actual pair and as a result exhibit signs of aging in the creased porcelain at the ankles. The wing tips on the toes of the shoes, as well as the heels, are glazed with a gold luster, and the boots are airbrushed with an evening desert landscape.

Works by this artist (2 items)

Boris Anisfeldt, Goat, ca. 1930-1940, pencil and pastel on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Otis Chatfield-Taylor in memory of her father Boris Anisfeldt, 1982.22
Goat
Dateca. 1930-1940
pencil and pastel on paper
Not on view
Boris Anisfeldt, Hispania, ca. 1914-1919, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Otis Chatfield-Taylor, 1976.120
Hispania
Dateca. 1914-1919
oil on canvas
Not on view

Audio

Stop 169: Cowboy Boots

Cowboy Boots
1980, slip-cast, airbrushed-underglaze and glazed porcelain with gold lusters

WILLIAM WILHELMI
Born: Garwin, Iowa 1939

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