Cartography in Contemporary Art

Statute Law - Helmet for Figure of "Force"

Item

Title

Statute Law - Helmet for Figure of "Force"

Description

A study done in preparation of a mural.

At the turn of the twentieth century, American artists decorated important public buildings with colorful and theatrical murals, images that were meant to enhance architectural spaces and impart lessons of good taste and moral values. In 1898 the National Society of Mural Painters nominated Kenyon Cox and nine other members to create murals for the new state appellate court building in New York City. The space given to Cox was the most challenging: Only four feet high and thirty-five feet long, it had two smaller, angled areas at each end. He chose to paint allegorical figures symbolizing the principles of law. This study for the figure of Force shows a woman wearing a helmet and looking out with a formidable expression; it is the kind of detailed sketch Cox made of each figure before beginning the mural. (Morgan, Kenyon Cox, 1856-1919: A Life in American Art, 1994)

Identifier

1983.114.4

Creator

Cox, Kenyon

Spatial Coverage

New York, New York See all items with this value

Date

ca. 1899

Subject

Mythology See all items with this value

Medium

Oil on Canvas

Extent

Study - 17 x 13 7/8 in. (43.2 x 35.3 cm.)

Temporal Coverage

1899 to present

Alternative Title

"Statute Law", Helmet for Figure of "Force" A Study for Mural for Appellate Court Building, New York

Relation

Smithsonian American Art Museum
https://americanart.si.edu/artwork/study-mural-appellate-court-building-new-york-statute-law-helmet-figure-force-5884

Provenance

Gift of Mrs. Ambrose Lansing

Rights

The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1979

Item sets

Armor Exhibition - Curran

Media

1983.114.4_1a.jpg