Luce Foundation Center

Smithsonian American Art Museum

Open daily, 11:30 a.m.–7 p.m.

The nation’s first collection of American art, an unparalleled record of the American experience.

Plan your visit

Renwick Gallery Stairwwell

Renwick Gallery

Open daily, 10 a.m.–5:30 p.m.

Located just feet from the White House, a branch of the museum that is home the nation's collection of contemporary craft and decorative art.

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How Do I Research My Art?

Want to learn more about the painting you found while clearing out the attic? For answers, be prepared for a little detective work.

How to Care for Your Collections

Regardless of the monetary value of your artwork, if it is personally meaningful, you should consider having the object conserved.

Recording a Changing Nation

This resource uses images from photographic surveys in 55 communities in 30 states across the United States as source documents to spark sustained inquiry.

Critical Thinking in Action

These 60-to-95-minute units pair thinking patterns with works of art to instill a thinking disposition transferable across classroom curriculum and into the wider world.

Director’s Circle

A national membership group of museum friends who share a love of American art and craft and our commitment to celebrating the extraordinary creativity of our nation’s artists.

A membership group for young professionals who are interested in immersing themselves in the American art experience.

Small Head

Media - 1968.154.9 - SAAM-1968.154.9_1 - 56322

Media - 1968.154.9 - SAAM-1968.154.9_3 - 131209

Media - 1968.154.9 - SAAM-1968.154.9_4 - 131211

Copied William Zorach, Small Head, ca. 1958-1962, carved stone, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Tessim Zorach and Dahlov Ipcar, 1968.154.9

Artwork Details

Title: Small Head
Artist: William Zorach
Date: ca. 1958-1962
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum
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Luce Foundation Center
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4th Floor
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47A
Dimensions: 4 ¹⁄₂ x 1 ³⁄₄ x 1 ³⁄₄ in. (11.4 x 4.4 x 4.4 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Tessim Zorach and Dahlov Ipcar
Mediums: stone
Mediums Description: carved stone
Classifications: Sculpture
Keywords: Abstract
Figure — head
Object Number: 1968.154.9
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1968.154.9

Artwork Description

William Zorach enjoyed carving heads because they offered limitless variety. Small carved heads make up more than one-third of his sculpture. The heads are not based on particular people, but were carved according to the shape, color, and texture of the stones he found while vacationing in Maine.

Luce Object Quote

“The most simple forms can have a beautiful rhythm.” William Zorach, Zorach Explains Sculpture, 1947