For #BearAwarenessWeek 🐻:
George Catlin (American, 1796-1872) Portraits of a Grizzly Bear and Mouse, Life Size, 1846-1848 oil on canvas, 26 5⁄8 x 32 1⁄2 in. (67.5 x 82.5 cm) Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery 1985.66.603
#MonochromeMonday:
Chiura Obata (Japanese-American, 1885 – 1975)
Untitled (Ostrich), c. 1930s
sumi-e; ink on paper
Private collection; photographed on display at Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery “Chiura Obata: American Modern” exhibition in 2019
Happy #LeapYear #LeapDay
Stanton Macdonald-Wright (American, 1890-1973)
An old pond a frog leaps in, the sound of water (Basho), from the Haiga Portfolio, 1965-66
woodblock print on mulberry paper
image: 19 3⁄4 × 15 7⁄8 in. (50.2 × 40.3 cm)
sheet: 21 3⁄8 × 17 7⁄8 in. (54.3 × 45.4 cm)
#TurtleTuesday:
Jacques Hnizdovsky (Ukrainian-American, 1915-1985)
Turtle, 1962
woodcut, 15 3⁄4 x 23 1⁄4 in. (40.0 x 59.1 cm)
(probably a Radiated Tortoise)
For when you can't decide between #FishFriday and #FrogFriday:
David Gilhooly (American, 1943-2013) Merfrog and her Pet Fish, 1979 white earthenware & glazes, 7 x 6 x 7 3⁄8 in. (17.8 x 15.2 x 18.7 cm) Smithsonian American Art Museum & Renwick Gallery 2007.47.12
"David Gilhooly made his first ceramic frog during a friendly mug-making competition among classmates at the University of California–Davis. This inspired the artist to create a whole civilization composed entirely of frogs, ranging from Napoleon-inspired frog busts to frog-Egyptian gods. Gilhooly originally thought about making pigs, but decided not to, stating: "The trouble with making a PigWorld rather than the FrogWorld was that pigs are 'loaded.' That is, people have a lot of negative ideas that are attached to pigs...." In Merfrog and her Pet Fish, Gilhooly refers to one of his favorite themes, fertility, by creating an absurdly voluptuous frog surrounded by devoted singing companions." (Artist's website, www.davidgilhooly.com, January 2006)
It's #WorldGorillaDay! 🦍
Felipe Archuleta (American, New Mexico, 1910-1991) Gorilla, 1976 carved & painted cottonwood w/ glue & sawdust 40 x 27 1⁄4 x 42 in. (101.6 x 69.2 x 106.7 cm.) Smithsonian American Art Museum 1986.65.228
July is #NationalBisonMonth!
George Catlin (American, 1796-1872)
Buffalo Bull, Grazing on the Prairie &
Buffalo Cow, Grazing on the Prairie
both 1832-3, oil on canvas
From “Picturing the American Buffalo: George Catlin and Modern Native American Artists” at Smithsonian American Art Museum (2019-20)
For #Woodensday:
Louis Schanker (NYC, 1903-1981) Owl, 1937 applewood carving Smithsonian American Art Museum
One more for #NationalPigDay:
Paul Manship (American, 1885-1966), Circe Enchants Ulysses' Sailors, 1957, bronze on wood base, 5 1⁄2 x 6 1⁄2 in. (14.0 x 16.5 cm) diameter. Smithsonian American Art Museum.
"Paul Manship created many sculptures of mythical characters and often chose to illustrate a particular moment in a legend rather than a general theme or symbol. This sculpture shows a scene from the story of Ulysses, a Greek leader in the Trojan War. When Ulysses and his men stopped at an island in search of food, the sorceress Circe captured the crew and turned them into pigs. Ulysses saved his men with the help of a special herb that countered Circe’s magic. Manship chose not to show the hero Ulysses and instead depicted Circe surrounded by the enslaved sailors."
It's #NationalBirdDay in the U.S. so here's a painting of one of my favorite native birds, the Roseate Spoonbill (Platalea ajaja):
Abbott Handerson Thayer (American, 1849–1921) Roseate Spoonbills, study for book Concealing Coloration in the Animal Kingdom, c. 1905-1909 oil on paperboard, 22 7⁄8 x 26 1⁄4 in. (58.2 x 66.6 cm.)