David Smith

David Smith, who, as part of the abstract expressionist movement, was best known for his large abstract sculptures and his expansion of the possibilities of space, material and scale in contemporary sculpture. Smith trained at the Art Students League from 1927 through 1932, alongside other up-and-coming abstract expressionist masters. He worked for the Works Project Administration Federal Arts Project from 1937 to 1939 and was a member of the American Abstract Artists group. During this time he developed his soldering technique for his metal sculptures, making him the first sculptor in the United States to work this manner. Considering metal to be the material of the 20th-century industry, his sculptural innovations were always in response to the possibilities of material and also artistic debates about abstraction. In addition to his monumental sculpture, Smith also was a prolific graphic artist, whose gestural and calligraphic drawings have been exhibited widely. Smith represented the United States in the 1951 São Paulo Biennial and the 1954 and 1958 Venice Biennales. Major works by Smith are held by collections such as Storm King Art Center; the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; and the Museum of Modern Art, New York.