Lost Soul, Found Spirit

Copied Robert Ebendorf, Lost Soul, Found Spirit, 1996, found materials and metal, 13 x 12 x 1 1⁄4 in. (33.0 x 30.5 x 3.3 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist in memory of Mr. Ronald H. Pearson, 1996.61

Artwork Details

Title
Lost Soul, Found Spirit
Artist
Date
1996
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
13 x 12 x 1 1⁄4 in. (33.0 x 30.5 x 3.3 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of the artist in memory of Mr. Ronald H. Pearson
Mediums
Mediums Description
found materials and metal
Classifications
Subjects
  • Animal — bird
  • Religion — New Testament — Christ
  • Dress — accessory — jewelry
  • Animal — rabbit
  • Religion — New Testament — Crucifixion
  • Animal — fish — crab
  • Figure — fragment — skeleton
  • Emblem — cross
Object Number
1996.61
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1996.61

Artwork Description

Robert Ebendorf created a series of disturbing pieces with this title following a painful divorce. The chicken's foot, squirrel's paw, and numerous claws represent the loss of hands, which are a jeweler's means of creating. With these symbols, Ebendorf expressed his own sense of loss in his personal life. The act of creating the pieces, however, was a kind of salvation for the artist. He acknowledged this by including in this piece a crucifix, an image of Jesus and rosary beads, to suggest suffering and redemption.