Lucy

Jack Whitten American

Not on view

Reflecting Whitten’s interest in the origins of humanity, Lucy is named after the fossilized skeleton discovered in Ethiopia in 1974. Whitten’s version features a vertical stack of carved wood resting on a stone from the ancient Cretan town of Phaistos, a block of African mahogany, and a modern metal I-beam. Each element symbolizes a different marker on humanity’s historical timeline. These elements also signal the places that Whitten held most dear: Crete, the summer home where he made almost all of his sculptures, Africa, his ancestral homeland, and his birthplace, Bessemer, Alabama. The wire and circuit board serve as substitutes for hair as well as the brain’s synapses.

Lucy, Jack Whitten (American, Bessemer, Alabama 1939–2018 New York), Wood, stone, metal, paint, plastic, glass and clay

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Lucy, Jack Whitten (American, Bessemer, Alabama 1939–2018 New York), Wood, stone, metal, paint, plastic, glass and clay
Lucy, Jack Whitten (American, Bessemer, Alabama 1939–2018 New York), Wood, stone, metal, paint, plastic, glass and clay
Lucy, Jack Whitten (American, Bessemer, Alabama 1939–2018 New York), Wood, stone, metal, paint, plastic, glass and clay

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