Description
Tony Smith's work has been associated with both Abstract Expressionist painting and Minimal sculpture. The Snake Is Out is an early work. Originally constructed in 1962 as a plywood model only 46 inches tall, it remained on Smith's back porch until 1969, when a steel version was commissioned for the Empire State Plaza. A second identical sculpture in an edition of three was also purchased by the Institute for the Arts, Rice University, in Houston, Texas. The undulating form that gives The Snake Is Out its name zigzags in space; one limb stretches out flat on the ground, then angles up and down again, forming a triangular opening. Massive forms interlock with the last leg so that one side has greater bulk and solidity. Because the piece changes radically from different points of view, the logic of its structure is not obvious from any single position. The viewer must experience the work by walking around the sculpture to see all its various forms and changing scale. The section resting on the ground is just above waist height; its human scale appears to invite the viewer into the space of the sculpture. Its triangular opening resembles a passageway or door. Overall, the looming height and massive forms achieve a grand and monumental scale appropriate to the sculpture's placement on the edge of the Empire State Plaza overlooking the City of Albany.
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Details
- Work Date:
- 1962-69
- Location:
- East Plaza
- Dimensions:
- 15'-2 1/2" x 26'-10 1/2" x 16'-11 1/2"
- Medium:
- painted mild steel