Sorrow

Copied Carl L. Schmitz, Sorrow, before 1940, terra cotta, 17 1⁄2 x 22 3⁄4 x 13 7⁄8 in. (44.5 x 57.9 x 35.4 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of International Business Machines Corporation, 1966.27.6

Artwork Details

Title
Sorrow
Artist
Date
before 1940
Location
Dimensions
17 1⁄2 x 22 3⁄4 x 13 7⁄8 in. (44.5 x 57.9 x 35.4 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of International Business Machines Corporation
Mediums
Mediums Description
terra cotta
Classifications
Subjects
  • State of being — emotion — sorrow
  • Figure group — female
Object Number
1966.27.6
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1966.27.6

Artwork Description

Carl L. Schmitz probably modeled the small sculpture Sorrow in the late 1930s. During the Depression, many sculptors found it difficult to get work and so turned to cheaper materials, like terra-cotta, which they could fire in their own small kilns. The outbreak of World War II brought pressure to bear upon Schmitz, a German-born American citizen, and Sorrow may have been his response to the emotional effects of war.