Fern

Cleo Hartwig, Fern, 1981, stone, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Albert Glinsky, 1984.43
Copied Cleo Hartwig, Fern, 1981, stone, 15 3⁄4 x 8 3⁄4 x 6 1⁄4 in. (40.0 x 22.2 x 15.9 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Albert Glinsky, 1984.43

Artwork Details

Title
Fern
Artist
Date
1981
Location
Dimensions
15 3⁄4 x 8 3⁄4 x 6 1⁄4 in. (40.0 x 22.2 x 15.9 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Albert Glinsky
Mediums
Mediums Description
stone
Classifications
Subjects
  • Object — foliage — fern
Object Number
1984.43
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1984.43

Artwork Description

Cleo Hartwig based Fern on the plant she remembered from her childhood in rural Michigan. In this piece she retained the texture and weightiness of the hard stone and stylized the individual fern fronds in order to express the plant’s formal beauty. Yet despite Fern’s abstracted appearance, the curled fronds suggest balled-up energy and the potential for growth. Indeed, the trio of leaves resembles a family group, in which the two taller “adult” fronds watch protectively over their “child.”