Untitled (Hart/​Heart)

Ulysses Davis, Untitled (Hart/Heart), ca. 1950-1960, carved wood, 34 × 35 × 7 in. (86.4 × 88.9 × 17.8 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2015.48

Artwork Details

Title
Untitled (Hart/​Heart)
Date
ca. 1950-1960
Dimensions
34 × 35 × 7 in. (86.4 × 88.9 × 17.8 cm)
Credit Line
Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment
Mediums Description
carved wood
Classifications
Subjects
  • Animal — deer
  • Emblem — heart
Object Number
2015.48

Artwork Description

Ulysses Davis carved this relief sculpture for his wife. Davis plays with words and form by depicting a hart, or mature male deer, bleating to his mate inside a heart-shaped frame. Playful young deer bound around a second border, which is set with additional heart shapes carved in relief. The piece, a departure from Davis’s better-known presidential busts and fantastic animals, speaks about familial love.

Works by this artist (10 items)

Earlie Hudnall, Jr., Hip Hop, 1993, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1994.23.7, © 1993, Earlie Hudnall, Jr.
Hip Hop
Date1993
gelatin silver print
Not on view
Earlie Hudnall, Jr., Looking Out, 1991, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1994.23.6, © 1991, Earlie Hudnall, Jr.
Looking Out
Date1991
gelatin silver print
Not on view
Earlie Hudnall, Jr., Street Champion, 1986, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1994.23.5, © 1986, Earlie Hudnall, Jr.
Street Champion
Date1986
gelatin silver print
Not on view
Earlie Hudnall, Jr., The Guardian, 1990, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1994.23.4, © 1990, Earlie Hudnall, Jr.
The Guardian
Date1990
gelatin silver print
Not on view

More Artworks from the Collection

Bently
Dateca. 1975
gelatin silver print
Not on view
Lure of the Sea
Dateca. 1975
gelatin silver print
Not on view
Eugene Von Bruenchenhein, Untitled, ca. 1945-1950, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Lewis and Jean Greenblatt, 2002.86.9
Untitled
Dateca. 1945-1950
gelatin silver print
Not on view