Tony Smith Sculpture Catalogue Raisonné

Documenting the breadth of sculptural production by American artist Tony Smith (1912–1980), this comprehensive book reveals the depth and complexity of Smith's oeuvre alongside the vast range of his intellectual pursuits.

Edited by James Voorhies and Sarah Auld
With Joan Pachner and Christopher Ketcham

MIT Press, October 2024
552 pp., 9 x 11 in, 463 color illus., 85 b&w illus.

Designed by Practise

Made possible with funding and support from Tony Smith Foundation and MIT Press; initiated as part of my responsibilities while Executive Director of the Tony Smith Foundation

Tony Smith Sculpture Catalogue Raisonné, with more than 500 full-color illustrations, is the first in a multi-publication project to reveal the depth and complexity of Smith's oeuvre while positioning its transdisciplinary nature in dialogue with contemporary voices. Often made of steel and painted black, Smith's large-scale sculptures demonstrate a committed experimentation in how geometric shapes can be modeled into holistic sculptural compositions. The ever-shifting qualities of his imposing works engage spectators in phenomenological experiences that continually change in relation to motion, position, sightline, and perspective, amid a panoply of shapes that generate and regenerate anew with each incremental shift in viewpoint.

Born in South Orange, New Jersey, Tony Smith (1912–1980) occupies an important place in the history of twentieth-century art and design. His intellectual and creative pursuits, encompassing sculpture, architecture, drawing, painting, and writing, were informed by his close study of biology, mathematics, philosophy, and literature, blending the improvisational with the analytical. His artistic process was both intellectual and instinctual relying upon rational structures inherent in polygonal forms, complemented by creative intuition, to shape his visions into what may be considered irrational objects—sculptures.

This volume is a comprehensive record of Smith's sculpture, providing an archival foundation for future study, interpretation, and analysis. A companion book, Against Reason: Tony Smith, Sculpture, and Other Modernisms, is published alongside to explore the ongoing vitality of Tony Smith, with newly commissioned essays and artist projects by practitioners working in a range of visual arts. These books will, for the first time, capture the depth, influence, and diversity of Smith's understudied oeuvre, establishing new ground for future interpretations and readings of his monumental work.

MIT Press, Preface