Facing the Unexpected

Polly Adams Sutton, Facing the Unexpected, 2013, western red cedar bark, ash, spruce root, and coated copper wire, basket 1: 6 1414 5812 38 in. basket 2: 7 x 11 789 14 in. basket 3: 7 3812 788 58 in. basket 4: 5 7810 128 34 in. basket 5: 4 387 127 58 in. basket 6: 4 386 145 14 in. basket 7: 4 385 385 18 in. basket 8: 3 3454 14 in. basket 9: 4 x 4 124 58 in., Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mary Anne Fray and museum purchase through the Decorative Arts and Crafts Endowment, 2021.52A-I, © Polly Adams Sutton. Photo by Tom Grotta, courtesy of browngrotta arts

Artwork Details

Title
Facing the Unexpected
Date
2013
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
basket 1: 6 1414 5812 38 in. basket 2: 7 x 11 789 14 in. basket 3: 7 3812 788 58 in. basket 4: 5 7810 128 34 in. basket 5: 4 387 127 58 in. basket 6: 4 386 145 14 in. basket 7: 4 385 385 18 in. basket 8: 3 3454 14 in. basket 9: 4 x 4 124 58 in.
Copyright
© Polly Adams Sutton. Photo by Tom Grotta, courtesy of browngrotta arts
Credit Line
Gift of Mary Anne Fray and museum purchase through the Decorative Arts and Crafts Endowment
Mediums Description
western red cedar bark, ash, spruce root, and coated copper wire
Classifications
Subjects
  • Object — other — basket
Object Number
2021.52A-I

Artwork Description

Facing the Unexpected features several baskets woven and slumped together to form one voluminous support system. Polly Adams Sutton arduously strips cedar bark from the logged forests of the Pacific Northwest, and then she weaves to her own rhythm as she goes. “There is no preconceived notion as to the purpose of my sculptural shapes, except perhaps a quest for pleasing curvilinear forms,” she explains. Relieved of their use, the baskets suggest the same ephemeral nature of abandoned nests.


This Present Moment: Crafting a Better World, 2022

Works by this artist (162 items)

Chiura Obata, El Capitán, 1931, color woodcut on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Obata Family, 2000.76.24, © 1989, Lillian Yuri Kodani
El Capitán
Date1931
color woodcut on paper
Not on view
Chiura Obata, Untitled (Magnolia in a Blue Round Vase), ca.1930s, ink on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Estate of Chiura Obata, 2020.74
Untitled (Magnolia in a Blue Round Vase)
Dateca.1930s
ink on paper
Not on view
Chiura Obata, Landslide, 1941, watercolor on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Estate of Chiura Obata, 2020.72.2
Landslide
Date1941
watercolor on paper
Not on view
Chiura Obata, Topaz, ca. 1942, pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Estate of Chiura Obata, 2020.72.5
Topaz
Dateca. 1942
pencil on paper
Not on view

Exhibitions

Quilt featuring the portrait of a woman
This Present Moment: Crafting a Better World
May 13, 2022April 2, 2023
This Present Moment: Crafting a Better World showcases the dynamic landscape of American craft today.

More Artworks from the Collection

Claire Falkenstein, City is Man, 1941-1952, linocut, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of The Falkenstein Foundation, 2019.27.14, ©1997, The Falkenstein Foundation
City is Man
Date1941-1952
linocut
Not on view
Claire Falkenstein, Untitled, 1976, embossed paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of The Falkenstein Foundation, 2019.27.18, ©1997, The Falkenstein Foundation
Untitled
Date1976
embossed paper
Not on view
Claire Falkenstein, Mandala, 1977, lithograph, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of The Falkenstein Foundation, 2019.27.19, ©1997, The Falkenstein Foundation
Mandala
Date1977
lithograph
Not on view
Nathan Oliveira, Site with Blue and White, 1978, monotype, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Moses Lasky, 2004.32.14
Site with Blue and White
Date1978
monotype
Not on view