Triumph of the Egg

Jeremy Anderson, Triumph of the Egg, 1970, assembled, painted and shellacked wood, fiberglass and sand, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak, 1983.92.1
Jeremy Anderson, Triumph of the Egg, 1970, assembled, painted and shellacked wood, fiberglass and sand, 20166 34 in. (50.840.617.1 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak, 1983.92.1

Artwork Details

Title
Triumph of the Egg
Date
1970
Dimensions
20166 34 in. (50.840.617.1 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak
Mediums Description
assembled, painted and shellacked wood, fiberglass and sand
Classifications
Subjects
  • Object — foodstuff — egg
  • Figure — fragment — arm
  • Fantasy
Object Number
1983.92.1

Artwork Description

The title of this piece probably refers to Sherwood Anderson's 1921 "The Triumph of the Egg." In the short story, the narrator tells how the egg spoils his family's hopes for success, first as chicken farmers and later as restaurateurs. The triumph of the egg is the continuous cycle of "the chicken and the egg," which leads the narrator to ponder the meaning of life. Jeremy Anderson (no relation to the author) depicts a human hand coming out of a speckled egg. Keeping the story in mind, we might suspect that the eggshell in this piece imprisons a person and that the hand calls for help or searches for an escape. The sculpture may also be a metaphor for Anderson's birth, since the short story was published the same year the artist was born.

Works by this artist (2 items)

Stokely Webster, The Champs Élysées, 1938, oil on wood, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1978.145.1
The Champs Élysées
Date1938
oil on wood
Not on view
Stokely Webster, Chicago, Belmont Harbor, 1940, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. Stokely Webster, 1978.145.2
Chicago, Belmont Harbor
Date1940
oil on canvas
Not on view

More Artworks from the Collection

Joseph Hardin, Untitled (figure at Table, View of Legs), ca. 1978, colored pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 1997.124.111
Untitled (figure at Table, View of Legs)
Dateca. 1978
colored pencil on paper
Not on view
William Zorach, (Untitled--Child's Head), 1925, pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift from the collection of the Zorach children, 1976.145.8
(Untitled – Child’s Head)
Date1925
pencil on paper
Not on view
Michael Clark, Classic Series, 1970, pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Fendrick, 1980.131.3
Classic Series
Date1970
pencil on paper
Not on view
Study for the Pushover
Date1981
pencil on paper
Not on view