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Nativity

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  • David Butler, Nativity, ca. 1968, paint on tin, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2014.61.1

Gallery Label
David Butler fashioned a garden of pounded, cut, and painted metal forms around his Louisiana house. His sculptures fuse biblical imagery with characters from his dreams. The tiered layers, attached parts, and cut-out shapes created an animated array as wind and sunlight played across his installation. Butler, with other African Americans across the South, blended Christian beliefs with folk practices to create spaces that felt self-determined and protective in a world that was often harsh and unpredictable.
Title
Nativity
Artist
David Butler
Date
ca. 1968
On View
  1. Smithsonian American Art Museum
  2. 1st Floor
  3. West Wing
Dimensions
39 × 28 in. (99.1 × 71.1 cm)
Copyright
Credit Line

Smithsonian American Art Museum

Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment

Mediums Description
paint on tin
Classifications
Sculpture
Highlights
Folk and Self-Taught Art
Keywords
  • Religion – New Testament – Nativity
Object Number
2014.61.1
Palette
Linked Open Data URI

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