Cubi XVIII
David Smith
(American, 1906–1965)
1964
Medium/TechniquePolished stainless steel
Dimensions115 3/4 x 60 x 21 3/4 in (294 x 152.4 x 55.2 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase with Centennial funds donated by Susan W. and Stephen D. Paine
Accession number68.280
On View
On viewClassificationsSculpture
Collections
This work by Smith, considered by many to be the greatest American sculptor of the 20th century, is from a series of twenty-eight related works called Cubi that were begun in 1963 and remained unfinished at the time of his death in 1965. Cubes and cylinders of burnished steel seem precariously counterbalanced upon one another, ready to topple at any moment, yet the piece has a feeling of weightlessness and extension into the surrounding space.
Provenance1968, sold by Marlborough Gallery, New York to the MFA. (Accession date: June 12, 1968)
CopyrightArt © Est. David Smith/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY
