Tony Smith (sculptor) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Tony Smith
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Smith with his sculptures at the Haags Gemeentemuseum in 1968
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| Born |
Anthony Peter Smith
September 23, 1912 |
| Died | December 26, 1980 (aged 68) |
| Nationality | American |
| Known for | Sculpture, visual arts |
| Spouse(s) | Jane Lawrence |
Anthony Peter Smith (born September 23, 1912 – died December 26, 1980) was an American artist. He was known for his sculptures, visual art, and architectural designs. Many people see him as a very important artist in the Minimalist sculpture movement.
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Early Life and Education
Tony Smith was born in South Orange, New Jersey. His family owned a factory that made waterworks equipment. Around 1916, Tony got sick with tuberculosis. This illness lasted for many years during his elementary school time.
To help him recover and keep his siblings safe, his family built a small, ready-made house in their backyard. He had a nurse and tutors at home. He sometimes went to Sacred Heart Elementary School in Newark. Tony used the small boxes his medicine came in to build cardboard models. He also loved visiting his family's factory. He was amazed by the machines and how things were made there.
Later, Smith went to high school in New York City. He tried going to college but felt it wasn't for him. In 1932, during the Great Depression, he opened a used bookstore in Newark. From 1934 to 1936, he worked at the family factory during the day. In the evenings, he took art classes at the Art Students League of New York. He studied drawing, painting, and anatomy.
In 1937, he moved to Chicago to study architecture. The next year, Smith started working for famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright. He began as a helper and bricklayer. He eventually became a Clerk-of-the-Works, helping manage construction. This period ended in 1940 when his mother became ill, and he returned to New Jersey.
Career as an Artist
In 1940, Smith started his own career designing buildings. He designed about twenty private homes. He also imagined many projects that were never built. One idea was a church in 1950 with painted glass by artist Jackson Pollock. Smith designed homes for other artists too. But he often felt frustrated working with clients. This made him want to focus more on his own art.
After living in Hollywood for two years (1943–1945), Smith returned to the East Coast. He began teaching and working on his art ideas. He became an important part of the New York art scene. He was friends with famous artists like Jackson Pollock, Barnett Newman, and Mark Rothko.
From 1953 to 1955, Smith lived in Germany and traveled in Europe. His wife, Jane, was there as an opera singer. During this time, he worked on new building designs and painted a lot. His daughter, Kiki Smith, was born in Germany in 1954. His twin daughters, Beatrice and Seton, were born in 1955 after they moved back to New Jersey.
Developing His Style
Smith taught architecture and design at different schools. At Pratt Institute, he created an important early sculpture called Throne (1956). This artwork came from a class project. Students had to find the simplest way to connect shapes in 3D. Smith added more shapes to the students' ideas. The final form reminded him of an African throne, so he named it Throne.
In 1960, a class project at Bennington College inspired Smith. They were studying how shapes fit together in nature, like soap bubbles. This led to his "Bennington Structure." It was the first time Smith saw how large geometric shapes could become powerful sculptures.
After a car accident in 1961, Smith began making small models of sculptures. He used shapes like tetrahedrons and octahedrons. By 1962, he was teaching at Hunter College. That year, he made Black Box, his first sculpture made from steel. This rectangular shape was inspired by a small file card box. Smith made it five times bigger. He hired a local welding company to build it. The welders thought he was strange, but they did excellent work. Smith loved the result. He had found a new way to create art. He saw Black Box as a mysterious form.
In 1962, he created Die, a large 6-foot steel cube. This sculpture helped make him famous as a very important artist. Other large works followed, like The Elevens Are Up (1963) and Source (1967). In 1967, Smith was featured on the cover of Time magazine. The cover showed his large plywood sculpture Smoke (1967) filling a museum space.
Smith is often linked to the Minimalist art movement. He used simple geometric shapes combined in a grid. He created powerful art through simplicity and large size. His sculptures show the influence of his friends like Barnett Newman and Jackson Pollock.
Smith also taught at many universities, including New York University and Hunter College. In 1969, he taught in Hawaii. There, he designed The Fourth Sign, which is now on the campus of the University of Hawaii at Manoa.
Exhibitions and Collections
Tony Smith's first art shows were in 1964. His first solo exhibition (where only his art was shown) was in 1966. That same year, his work was a main part of the important "Primary Structures" show at the Jewish Museum in New York. His large sculptures were also shown at the Wadsworth Atheneum and the Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia.
A big show called "Tony Smith: Architect, Painter, Sculptor" was held at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1998. It included his buildings, paintings, and sculptures. His art has also been shown in Europe and at major international events like the Venice Biennale.
On September 23, 2012, people celebrated 100 years since Smith's birth. Museums and art places around the world held special events. This included a sculpture display in Bryant Park in New York. An exhibition called "Kiki Smith, Seton Smith, Tony Smith: A Family of Artists" opened in Germany.
Smith's art is in many top museums around the world. These include the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the National Gallery of Art in Washington. In 2003, the National Gallery of Art bought one of the four copies of his famous steel sculpture, Die.
His sculpture Smoke (1967) is now in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. It fills a tall entrance area of the museum.
Private Life
Tony Smith met his wife, Jane Lawrence, in New York in 1943. She was an opera singer and actress. They got married in Santa Monica, California.
Tony and Jane had three daughters: Kiki Smith, Seton Smith, and Beatrice "Bebe" Smith. Beatrice, who was Seton's twin, passed away in 1988.
In 1961, Smith was in a car accident. After this, he developed a blood condition called polycythemia. His health was always a concern. He passed away from a heart attack on December 26, 1980, at age 68. At the time of his death, he and his family lived in South Orange, New Jersey.
See also
- Environmental sculpture
- List of sculptures by Tony Smith
