David Smith was unquestionably one of the most influential and innovative American sculptors of the twentieth century. Born in Decatur, Indiana, in 1906, Smith was trained as a painter at the Art Students League in New York (1926–30) before turning to sculpture in the early 1930s. His career as a sculptor may be divided into three phases. In the beginning he created welded metal constructions into which he often incorporated industrial objects. In his second phase, during the 1940s and 1950s, Smith executed personal, landscape-inspired sculptures characterized by a delicate linear quality, reminiscent of drawing in metal and similar in feel to contemporary painting. He was a great friend of the Abstract Expressionist painters, including Jackson Pollock and Robert Motherwell. In the final phase of his development, begun at the end of the 1950s, his work became monumental in size and its elements were reduced to overlapping geometric plates of highly polished steel. Just as the industrial objects of his early work prefigured later sculpture, so these reductive, geometric, massive pieces of the 1960s may be said to prefigure the minimal "primary structures" produced by other artists later in that decade.
Becca, executed in 1965 and named after one of the sculptor's two daughters, is a fine example of Smith's late work. Like almost all his sculpture, this piece is two-dimensional in orientation, intended to be seen from the front. Although huge in scale and consisting of only a few simple geometric elements, Becca is marked by grace and energy. The diagonal elements at the top of the piece give the work a joyous lift and buoyancy, and the burnished scribbles resembling brushstrokes that cover the entire work are at once expressive and playful.
Inscription: Signed, dated, and inscribed (on base): David Smith April 30 1965 BECCA
the artist, Bolton Landing, N. Y. (until d. 1965; his estate, New York, 1965–72; sold through Marlborough Gallery, New York to MMA)
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "New York Painting and Sculpture: 1940–1970," October 18, 1969–February 8, 1970, no. 376 (lent by the Estate of David Smith. Courtesy of Malborough-Gerson Gallery, New York).
Cincinnati. Contemporary Arts Center. "Monumental Art," September 13–November 1, 1970, unnumbered cat. (lent by the Marlborough Gallery, New York, and the Estate of David Smith).
Palm Beach. Society of the Four Arts. "Alexander Calder/Louise Nevelson/David Smith," March 6–April 5, 1971, no. 33 (lent by the Estate of David Smith, Courtesy of the Marlborough Gallery, New York).
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "20th Century Accessions, 1967–1974," March 7–April 23, 1974, no catalogue.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Tribute to a Curator: Robert Beverly Hale," November 16, 1978–March 4, 1979, extended to March 18, 1979, no catalogue.
Washington, D.C. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution. "David Smith: Painter, Sculptor, Draftsman," November 4, 1982–January 2, 1983, no. 163.
San Antonio Museum of Art. "David Smith: Painter, Sculptor, Draftsman," March 27–June 4, 1983, no. 163.
Mountainville, N. Y. Storm King Art Center. "20th Century Sculpture: Selections from The Metropolitan Museum of Art," May 18–October 31, 1984, unnum. brochure [remained on extended loan until 1986].
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden," June 4–November 1, 1987, no catalogue.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden," May 1–October 30, 1988, no catalogue.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden," May 2–October 29, 1989, no catalogue.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden," July 31–October 28, 1990, no catalogue.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden," May 1–October 31, 1993, no catalogue.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden," May 1–October 30, 1994, unnum. brochure.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden," May 2–October 29, 1995, no catalogue.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden," May 1–October 27, 1996, unnum. brochure.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden," May 1–late fall 1997, unnum. brochure.
Mountainville, N. Y. Storm King Art Center. "The Fields of David Smith," May 17–November 15, 1999, unnumbered cat. (pp. 136–37).
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "David Smith on the Roof," May 16–November 15, 2000, brochure no. 7.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art. "David Smith: Cubes and Anarchy," April 3–July 24, 2011, unnumbered cat. (p. 90, fig. 1).
"Farewell to the Vulcan of American Art." Life 58 (June 11, 1965), ill. p. 130 (with the artist).
Clement Greenberg. "Critical Comment." Art in America 54 (January–February 1966), p. 32, ill. (color).
Jane Harrison Cone and Margaret Paul inDavid Smith, 1906–1965: A Retrospective Exhibition. Exh. cat., Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University. Cambridge, Mass., 1966, p. 82, no. 541, fig. 47.
Dan Budnik and Ugo Mulas. "A Personal Portfolio." Art in America 54 (January–February, 1966), ill. p. 37 (installation photo).
David Smith. David Smith. Ed. Cleve Gray. New York, 1968, ill. p. 168.
Henry Geldzahler. New York Painting and Sculpture: 1940–1970. Exh. cat., The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York, 1969, pp. 34, 60, no. 376, ill. p. 107 (color).
Mahonri Sharp Young. "The Metropolitan Museum of Art Centenary Exhibitions I. The New York School." Apollo 90 (November 1969), p. 432, fig. 12.
Edward F. Fry. David Smith. Exh. cat., Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. New York, 1969, pp. 13, 104.
Florence McIlvane. "Bolton Keeps Vivid Memories of David Smith." Post-Star (Glens Falls, N.Y.) (March 24, 1969), ill. p. 3 (with Leon Pratt, caretaker for the artist's estate, Bolton Landing, N.Y.).
Lawrence Alloway. "Monumental Art at Cincinnati." Arts Magazine 45 (November 1970), pp. 35–36, ill. pp. 34, 36 (installation photo).
Lawrence Alloway inMonumental Art. Exh. cat., Contemporary Arts Center. [Cincinnati], 1970, unpaginated, ill.
Calvin Tomkins. "Profiles: Moving with the Flow." New Yorker 47 (November 6, 1971), p. 110.
John L. Hess. "Secret Art Trade Cost Metropolitan 6 Pictures, Not 2, as First Reported." New York Times (January 14, 1973), p. 55, ill.
John L. Hess. "Metropolitan Listing Discloses Sale of 5 More Major Paintings." New York Times (January 25, 1973), p. 52.
Walter D. Bannard. "He Comes to Praise the Met." New York Times (June 17, 1973), p. D24, ill. (installation photo).
Henry Geldzahler. "Letters to the Editor: The Metropolitan Museum: Exchanges and Programs." New York Times (February 8, 1973), p. 42.
John L. Hess. "Met Guaranteed Traded Painting." New York Times (January 29, 1973), p. 22.
John L. Hess. "Met Appears to Have Traded More Than It Got." New York Times (January 20, 1973), p. 38.
"Twentieth-Century Art: Becca." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 31 (Summer 1973), p. 177, ill.
John L. Hess. "Marlborough Concedes Gain in Met Art Deal." New York Times (February 10, 1973), p. 19.
Julia M. Busch. A Decade of Sculpture: The 1960s. Cranbury, N.J., 1974, fig. 29.
Henry Geldzahler in "Twentieth Century Art." The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Notable Acquisitions, 1965–1975. New York, 1975, p. 223, ill.
Rosalind E. Krauss. The Sculpture of David Smith: A Catalogue Raisonné. New York, 1977, p. 116, no. 646, fig. 646.
Henry Geldzahler. Monuments and Monoliths: A Metamorphosis. Exh. cat., Nassau County Museum of Fine Arts. Roslyn, N. Y., 1978, p. 4.
Jeffrey Wechsler inVanguard American Sculpture 1913–1939. Exh. cat., Rutgers University Art Gallery. New Brunswick, N.J., 1979, p. 103.
Harry Rand inRecent Trends in Collecting: Twentieth-Century Painting and Sculpture from the National Museum of American Art. Exh. cat., National Museum of American Art. Washington, D.C., 1982, p. 47.
Jane Addams Allen. "A Double Accolade For Sculptor David Smith." Washington Times Magazine (November 5, 1982), p. 3C.
Joe Brown. "Showing Off Smith." Washington Post (November 4, 1982), p. C9.
Edward F. Fry and Miranda McClintic. David Smith: Painter, Sculptor, Draftsman. Exh. cat., Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. New York, 1982, p. 143, no. 163, pl. 115.
Kathleen Howard, ed. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide. New York, 1983, p. 427, no. 37, ill. (color).
Stanley E. Marcus. David Smith: The Sculptor and His Work. Ithaca, N.Y., 1983, pp. 187, 190, fig. 92.
Rosalind Krauss. "Changing the Work of David Smith." Art Journal 43 (Spring 1983), p. 95.
Lisa M. Messinger in "Twentieth Century Art." The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Notable Acquisitions, 1983–1984. New York, 1984, p. 94.
Lowery S. Sims in20th Century Sculpture: Selections from The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Exh. brochure, Storm King Art Center. [Mountainville, N. Y.], [1984], unpaginated, ill.
Michael Brenson. "Art: 100 Modern Sculptures at Storm King Center." New York Times (August 3, 1984), p. C20.
Karen Wilkin. David Smith. New York, 1984, p. 85, fig. 100.
John Beardsley. A Landscape for Modern Sculpture: Storm King Art Center. New York, 1985, pp. 73, 105, ill. p. 73 (color, installation photo).
Kay Larson. "The Met Goes Modern: Bill Lieberman's Brave New Wing." New York Magazine 19 (December 15, 1986), p. 42.
Jörn Merkert, ed. David Smith: Skulpturen, Zeichnungen. Exh. cat., Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf. Munich, 1986, ill. p. 25 (color).
Oswaldo Rodriguez Roque et al. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 9, The United States of America. New York, 1987, p. 152, colorpl. 115.
Paul Richard. "Mixing It Up At the Metropolitan: Standards & Surprises at the Museum's New Wallace Wing." Washington Post (February 1, 1987), ill. p. F9.
William Wilson. "A Mod Fan Dance at The Met." Los Angeles Times (February 8, 1987), ill. p. 5 (installation view).
Amei Wallach. "It's Modern's Time at the Metropolitan." Newsday (January 4, 1987), p. II/11, ill. p. II/5.
Roger Bevan. "Museum Review: The Metropolitan Museum: a New Wing for Modern Art." Apollo 127 (January 1988), p. 41, fig. 4.
Margaret Moorman. "Up on the Roof." Art News 87 (Summer 1988), p. 43.
Barbara Burn, ed. Masterpieces of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York, 1993, p. 291, ill. p. 289 (color).
Kathleen Howard, ed. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide. 2nd rev. ed. (1st ed., 1983). New York, 1994, p. 458, no. 46, ill. (color).
The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden. Exh. cat., The Metropolitan Museum of Art. [New York], 1994, unpaginated.
Giovanni Carandente inDavid Smith in Italy. Exh. cat., PradaMilanoarte. Milan, 1995, ill. pp. 26–27 (installation photo, Bolton Landing, [N.Y.], 1965).
The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden. Exh. cat., The Metropolitan Museum of Art. [New York], 1996, unpaginated, ill.
Barbara Flynn inPainted Steel: The Late Work of David Smith. Exh. cat., Gagosian Gallery. [New York], 1998, p. 4.
Candida N. Smith. The Fields of David Smith. Ed. Sally Fisher, Barbara Flynn, and Candida N. Smith. Exh. cat., Storm King Art Center, Mountainville, N. Y. [New York], 1999, pp. 24, 123, ill. pp. 136–37 (installation photo, Bolton Landing, [N.Y.], 1965).
Calvin Tomkins. "Measuring up to Nature: David Smith at Storm King." New Yorker 75 (July 19, 1999), pp. 86, 88, ill. p. 87 (color, installation photo).
Joan Pachner inThe Fields of David Smith. Ed. Sally Fisher, Barbara Flynn, and Candida N. Smith. Exh. cat., Storm King Art Center, Mountainville, N. Y. [New York], 1999, p. 142.
Brooks Adams. David Smith: The Last Nudes. Ed. Kay C. Pallister and Candida N. Smith. Exh. cat., Gagosian Gallery. [New York], 2000, p. 9.
David Smith on The Roof. Exh. cat., The Metropolitan Museum of Art. [New York], 2000, unpaginated, ill.
Paul Hayes Tucker inDavid Smith: A Centennial. Exh. cat., Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. New York, 2006, pp. 86–87, fig. 59 (color).
Candida Smith. "My Childhood Companions." Tate Etc no. 8 (September 2006), p. 106.
Bénédicte Ajac and Nat Trotman inDavid Smith: A Centennial. Exh. cat., Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. New York, 2006, p. 416.
David Anfam. Abstract Expressionism: A World Elsewhere. Exh. cat., Haunch of Venison. New York, 2008, p. 142.
Sarah Hamill. David Smith: Works, Writings and Interview. Barcelona, 2011, p. 87, ill. p. 96 (color, installation photo, Met Roof Garden).
Christopher Bedford inDavid Smith: Cubes and Anarchy. Exh. cat., Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Munich, 2011, pp. 91, 151, fig. 1 (color).
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide. New York, 2012, p. 428, ill. (color).
Susan J. Cooke, ed. David Smith: Collected Writings, Lectures, and Interviews. Oakland, 2018, pp. 13, 431.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide. New York, 2019, p. 428, ill. (color).
Stefano Esengrini. "Vision, Perception, Openness: David Smith’s New Sculpture." Abstraction Matters: Contemporary Sculptors in Their Own Words. Ed. Cristina Baldacci et al. Newcastle upon Tyne, 2019, p. 81.
Maricelle Robles inMaking The Met, 1870–2020. Ed. Andrea Bayer with Laura D. Corey. Exh. cat., The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York, 2020, fig. 244 (installation view, Exh. New York 1969–70).
Christopher Lyon, ed. David Smith Sculpture: A Catalogue Raisonné, 1932–1965. Vol. 1, Essays, Chronology, References. [New York], 2021, p. 370, no. 768.
Christopher Lyon, ed. David Smith Sculpture: A Catalogue Raisonné, 1932–1965. Vol. 3, 1954–1965. [New York], 2021, p. 488, no. 768, ill. (installation photo, Bolton Landing, N.Y., ca. 1965) and ill. p. 489 (color).
Tracee Ng inDavid Smith Sculpture: A Catalogue Raisonné, 1932–1965. Ed. Christopher Lyon. Vol. 1, Essays, Chronology, References. [New York], 2021, p. 157.
The Met's Libraries and Research Centers provide unparalleled resources for research and welcome an international community of students and scholars.
The Met Collection API is where all makers, creators, researchers, and dreamers can connect to the most up-to-date data and public domain images for The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.
The Met's engagement with art from 1890 to today includes the acquisition and exhibition of works in a range of media, spanning movements in modernism to contemporary practices from across the globe.
