Lorser Feitelson, Genesis #2, 1934, oil on fiberboard, 40 1⁄4 x 48 in. (102.1 x 121.8 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1985.33
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Artwork Details
- Title
- Genesis #2
- Artist
- Date
- 1934
- Location
- Not on view
- Dimensions
- 40 1⁄4 x 48 in. (102.1 x 121.8 cm)
- Credit Line
- Museum purchase
- Mediums
- Mediums Description
- oil on fiberboard
- Classifications
- Subjects
- Religion — New Testament — Mary
- Allegory — life — womanhood
- Dress — costume — mask
- Object — furniture — lamp
- Object — other — shell
- Object — foodstuff — egg
- Object — fruit — cantaloupe
- Object Number
- 1985.33
Artwork Description
Lorser Feitelson created images that he hoped would inspire a "deep emotional response" through the careful arrangement of objects. In Genesis #2 he combined symbols to suggest the cycle of life. The melon and conch shell are images of female sexuality, and the egg shell, baby's face, and skull show the progression from conception to death. Feitelson painted a telescope going through the eyes of the different faces and out the top of the skull, pointing toward the universe. He surrounded this symbol of science and discovery with objects that evoke an alternative reality in which the physical evidence cannot explain the mysteries of life and death.