San Diego Museum of Art - Sunday Afternoon

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Bookmark: https://collection.sdmart.org/objects-1/info/4233

Sunday Afternoon

Hughie Lee-Smith, American, (September 20, 1915–February 23, 1999)

Creation date: 1953

Creation place: United States

Other Information

Type: Acrylic Painting

Medium and Support: Acrylic on board

Credit Line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Norton S. Walbridge

Accession Number: 1996.5

Dimensions: 24 in. x 36 in. (60.96 cm x 91.44 cm)

Provenance

Mr. and Mrs. Norton S. Walbridge, La Jolla, California ( - October 28, 1996)

San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego, California (October 28, 1996 - )

Label Copy

The artist’s given surname was Smith, but he changed his name to Lee-Smith after some of his friends decided that Smith was too ordinary of a name if he was going to be an important artist. In 1939, a year after graduation from the Cleveland Institute of Art, Lee-Smith relocated to Detroit, where the urban environment and, in particular, its dilapidated housing inspired many works. These scenes, like that depicted in Sunday Afternoon, present desolate spaces and evoke a sense of loneliness, expressing the emotional distance between people. During the period that Lee-Smith painted this work, Abstract Expressionism was at the height of its power, yet despite the artistic trends, he remained focused on representational and narrative art. Although Sunday Afternoon addresses urban alienation and decay, there is also a mysterious quality to the composition that is typical of the artist’s work as he also engaged with Surrealism.
Last Updated: 7/14/2021

Exhibition

This object was included in the following exhibitions:

The Walbridge Legacy The San Diego Museum of Art , 4/9/1988 - 5/29/1988

Art of the United States from the San Diego Museum of Art The San Diego Museum of Art , 11/6/2010 - 2/9/2011

Ortra vez Modern and Contemporary The San Diego Museum of Art , 3/30/2013 - 7/14/2013

Art of the 20th Century Rotaton San Diego Museum of Art , 9/25/2013 - 1/8/2014

American: Art of the 20th Century San Diego Museum of Art , 1/18/2014 - 8/26/2014

American Art The San Diego Museum of Art , 11/26/2016 - 8/15/2021

Art of the Americas The San Diego Museum of Art , 9/7/2021 - 00/00/00

Bibliography

This object has the following bibliographic references:

The Walbridge Legacy San Diego Museum of Art. San Diego, California, 1988
Page Number: 63

Mr. D. Scott Atkinson. San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego Museum of Art. San Diego, California, 2003
Page Number: 223, Figure Number: 223

Marks

Signature, Lower left:

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This object is a member of the following portfolios:

American Art

Modern and Contemporary

Painting

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