The Curve

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The Curve

Artist Mary Callery (American, 1903-1977)

Date1947

Dimensions22 × 30 × 7 1/2 in. (55.9 × 76.2 × 19.1 cm)

MediumBronze

ClassificationSculpture

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number

1947.63

On View

External Site Address (External address), On Loan

Label Text“What should sculpture be?... To be a work of art, to me, it must have its emotional life. One must like the thing, be attracted to it, or even be repulsed. It must work on you. Only then does it become living.” – Mary Callery While Mary Callery is associated with Abstract Expressionism, she created carved or cast sculptures, expanding the movement beyond painting of which it is most known. The Curve exemplifies Callery’s distinctive style of attenuated linear, open, and interweaving forms. Extending out into the viewer’s space, it evokes a sense of movement, particularly in Callery’s rendering of a wave-like shape. The slender figures appear as if they will soon come to life. Having financial means through her family, Callery was able to pursue her desire to become a sculptor and moved to Paris in 1930. There, she became ensconced in the vanguard artistic circles that included Alexander Calder, Fernand Léger, and Pablo Picasso. Callery also became an important benefactor, frequently lending her Paris studio to her fellow artists and acquiring an incredible collection of works by them. Following the Nazi invasion of France, she returned to New York in 1940, fully developing her signature style, which received nearly instantaneous acclaim.Published ReferencesResch, John Phillips, Man and Society: Freedom and Liberty, Columbus, 1972, repr. on cover.

Fundaburk, Emma Lila and Davenport, Thomas G., Art in Public Places in the United States, Bowling Green, 1975, repr. no. 221, p. 174.

Exhibition HistoryToledo Museum of Art, Sculpture Today, 1947, repr. on cover.

Art Gallery of Toronto, Ontario, Sculpture Today, 1948.

Toledo Museum of Art, The Unseen Art of TMA: What's in the Vaults and Why?, September 12, 2004-January 2, 2005 (no catalogue or checklist).