Temptation

Media - 1991.98 - SAAM-1991.98_1 - 62682
Copied Eluid Levi Martinez, Temptation, 1990, carved and painted aspen and cedar, 21 x 14 1⁄4 x 16 5⁄8 in. (53.4 x 36.2 x 42.3 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1991.98

Artwork Details

Title
Temptation
Artist
Date
1990
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
21 x 14 1⁄4 x 16 5⁄8 in. (53.4 x 36.2 x 42.3 cm.)
Markings
back of post lower edge in black ink: 1990 EM c (written in a circle) (written sideways) back of post lower edge in black ink: "TEMPTATION"/ELUID L. MARTINEZ/SANTA FE, N.M. (written sideways)
Credit Line
Gift of the artist
Mediums
Mediums Description
carved and painted aspen and cedar
Classifications
Keywords
  • State of being — evil — temptation
  • Object — fruit — apple
  • Religion — Satan
Object Number
1991.98
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1991.98

Artwork Description

Eluid Levi Martinez produced many versions of the temptation in the Garden of Eden. He plays with scale in his pieces, making objects bigger according to their importance in the story. In this piece the devil and the tree of life loom over the other trees, but the apple is the largest of all the elements because it symbolizes the desire and temptation that led to man's downfall.