Fiddler

Unidentified, Fiddler, early 20th century, carved and painted wood, approx. 10 x 6 x 5 in. (25.4 x 15.2 x 12.7 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1986.65.295
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Artwork Details

Title
Fiddler
Artist
Unidentified
Date
early 20th century
Location
Dimensions
approx. 10 x 6 x 5 in. (25.4 x 15.2 x 12.7 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson
Mediums
Mediums Description
carved and painted wood
Classifications
Subjects
  • Figure male — full length
  • Performing arts — music — fiddle
Object Number
1986.65.295
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1986.65.295

Artwork Description

Early-twentieth-century wood-carvers often made toy figures with movable parts to amuse their children. The Fiddler’s arms and legs can be moved to suggest that he is playing the violin and dancing; in Seated Man with Pipe the figure’s left arm can move up and down to simulate the gesture of smoking. In both sculptures the artists paid more attention to animating the figures than they did to detail or color.

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