Existing comment:
Grant Wood, 1881-1942
The regionalist painter Grant Wood had a wry and sometimes dark sense of humor. This smiling caricature, with its dimples and pince-nez, was probably made around 1925, when the artist was still in the midst of launching his career.
Wood's family members have recalled that at Christmas, he gave away between fifty and one hundred of these original tiny sculptures, made in gilded plaster. Through these small gifts, the artist literally presented himself and his compliments to his recipients. This metal version may have been created in the early 1970s.
c 1972-73, after c. 1925 original |