Ginevra (first version, unfinished)

Hiram Powers, Ginevra (first version, unfinished), modeled 1838, marble, 23 121612 12 in. (59.740.631.7 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase in memory of Ralph Cross Johnson, 1968.155.23
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Artwork Details

Title
Ginevra (first version, unfinished)
Artist
Date
modeled 1838
Dimensions
23 121612 12 in. (59.740.631.7 cm)
Credit Line
Museum purchase in memory of Ralph Cross Johnson
Mediums
Mediums Description
marble
Classifications
Subjects
  • Literature — Shelley — Ginevra
  • Figure female — bust
  • Dress — historic — classical dress
Object Number
1968.155.23

Artwork Description

Hiram Powers (1805-73) was among the first American sculptors to establish an international reputation, rising to fame in the late 1840s with his Greek Slave, a life-size marble sculpture of a chained, nude woman. Few could have predicted Powers' incredible success from his humble beginnings on a farm in Ohio or his time in Washington, DC, where he made somber plaster portraits of four early presidents and other luminaries. Powers moved to Florence, Italy, with his wife and young children in 1837, lured there by its abundance of fine marble and highly skilled stone carvers. He quickly realized there was much to gain from making ideal compositions of nude figures drawn from literary, biblical, and historical themes. Powers set up a studio dividing labor among several assistants and, using the latest technologies such as the pointing machine, to create numerous replicas of his most popular designs in marble. Although he always intended to return to the United States, Powers remained abroad until his death and became an unofficial ambassador for American culture. He was a central figure in the expatriate colony in Florence, where he masterfully marketed his work to British nobles and American collectors touring Europe.

Works by this artist (791 items)

Mary Vaux Walcott, Arnica alpina, 1905, watercolor on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1970.355.103
Arnica alpina
Date1905
watercolor on paper
Not on view
Mary Vaux Walcott, Goldenpea (Thermopsis rhombifolia), 1923, watercolor on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1970.355.634
Goldenpea (Thermopsis rhombifolia)
Date1923
watercolor on paper
Not on view
Mary Vaux Walcott, Mountain Juniper (Juniperus sibirica), 1917, watercolor on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1970.355.424
Mountain Juniper (Juniperus sibirica)
Date1917
watercolor on paper
Not on view
Mary Vaux Walcott, Untitled--Plant Study, 1929, watercolor on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1970.355.222
Untitled – Plant Study
Date1929
watercolor on paper
Not on view

More Artworks from the Collection

Mary Vaux Walcott, Arnica alpina, 1905, watercolor on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1970.355.103
Arnica alpina
Date1905
watercolor on paper
Not on view
Mary Vaux Walcott, Goldenpea (Thermopsis rhombifolia), 1923, watercolor on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1970.355.634
Goldenpea (Thermopsis rhombifolia)
Date1923
watercolor on paper
Not on view
Dwinell Grant, Untitled, 1936, watercolor on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Patricia and Phillip Frost, 1986.92.31
Untitled
Date1936
watercolor on paper
Not on view
Alex Redein, Low Tide at the Flats, n.d., opaque watercolor and collage on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1972.137
Low Tide at the Flats
Daten.d.
opaque watercolor and collage on paper
Not on view