Word: doorways
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Smith's work is at its best with the 1960 "Doorway on Wheels." Another assemblage of found and manufactured elements arranged in a strikingly two-dimensional form, this piece recalls Louise Nevelson's monumental works. The work's visual center is not the titled egress, but rather the bow of diamond-forms and supports that it frames...
...represents a portable American dream, a fantasy on wheels reflecting both the glittery consumer culture and real promise of American aspirations in the 1950s. We know not whether the stars are tumbling downwards or floating upwards; their fanciful arrangement reassures, yet their sharp edges make this fantasy menacing. In "Doorway," Smith shows American aspirations, warts and all--and the artfully clumsy, jerrybuilt support of its metal stars insistently reminds us of their real basis...
Judicious appropriations of other artistic styles are on display here but are always tempered by Smith's unique social background. "Doorway"'s exceptional craftsmanship and balance of elements recalls the ingenious arrangements of Alexander Calder's stabiles (grounded mobiles...
Just as Smith leaves behind the fantasy of primary colors which animates most of Calder's work, he also forsakes the Calderian motif of ingenious effortlessness. Produced in 1960 at the height of post-war economic prosperity, Smith's "Doorway" served notice on Americans that their consumer fantasies of self-fulfillment were only inspiring when left unsatisfied...
...hopes to double its endowment in five years. If not, the foundation may simply fold. That would be a blow in an era when the arts are undersupported. "It is important that people realize that art is not an exclusive practice," says Serrano, whose lush photo of a cathedral doorway appears in the foundation's 1996 calendar. "Art is not a radical thing." Maybe not, but as the catalog shows, funding the arts these days requires radical tactics...