Huntress

Dan Dailey, Huntress, 1993, fabricated and patinated bronze and gold plated bronze and cut, polished, and blown glass and plate glass, 32 ³⁄₈ x 24 x 13 in. (82.3 x 61.0 x 33.0 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the James Renwick Alliance, 1994.77

Artwork Details

Title: Huntress
Artist: Dan Dailey
Date: 1993
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum
/
Luce Foundation Center
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4th Floor
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56B
Dimensions: 32 ³⁄₈ x 24 x 13 in. (82.3 x 61.0 x 33.0 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of the James Renwick Alliance
Mediums: bronze
glass
light bulb
Mediums Description: fabricated and patinated bronze and gold plated bronze and cut, polished, and blown glass and plate glass
Classifications: Decorative Arts
Furniture
Subjects: Figure — full length
Occupation — hunter
Object Number: 1994.77
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1994.77

Artwork Description

Every piece that Dan Dailey creates begins with a drawing, and he likes to keep some of the two-dimensional elements of the sketch in the final glass sculpture. In Huntress, the hard geometric lines of the female figure came from a drawing, and while she is three-dimensional, the artist made no attempt to make her look realistic. Dailey captured her midthrust as she drives her spear into a spotted glass bubble. He called manipulations like this "planned collisions," when he deforms the glass in its molten stage. Dailey often includes a functional aspect to his sculptures because of his background in design. Huntress also serves as a lamp, and when plugged in, the figure's orange "hair" and the purple orb on the base light up.