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The Thundershower

Smithsonian American Art Museum and its Renwick Gallery

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Object Details

Artist
H. Lyman Saÿen, born Philadelphia, PA 1875-died Philadelphia, PA 1918
Gallery Label
Saÿen studied with Matisse in Paris and was among the first to bring modern art into Philadelphia's conservative culture. He created The Thundershower from a mix of European modernism and Native American decorative patterns. But this painting is not just "cross-cultural." It also marks a transition from an older world to a new and dynamic century. The two figures move through time and space like the frames of a filmstrip, and organic forms meld with angles and arcs of pure color. Before he began to paint, Saÿen was an electrical engineer who held patents for radiological instruments. He died on the threshold of the Machine Age, shortly after completing this work, and The Thundershower suggests an artist who was already engaged in a new way of seeing.Exhibition Label, Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2006
Credit Line
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of H. Lyman Sayen to his nation
ca. 1917-1918
Object number
1967.6.19
Restrictions & Rights
CC0
Type
Painting
Medium
tempera on wood
Dimensions
36 x 46 in. (91.4 x 116.8 cm.)
See more items in
Smithsonian American Art Museum Collection
Department
Painting and Sculpture
On View
Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2nd Floor, North Wing
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Topic
Figure female
Abstract
Allegory\other\nature
Landscape\weather\shower
Record ID
saam_1967.6.19
Usage of Metadata (Object Detail Text)
CC0
GUID (Link to Original Record)
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/vk71aafcf6a-aeea-4c56-a052-ac6e436cbd16

Related Content

  • 1918: A Year in the Collections

This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Open Access page.
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IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
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