Artwork Information

  • Title:

    John Brown

  • Artist:

    Carstenson, Cecil C.

  • Artist Bio:

    American, 1906–1991

  • Date:

    1979

  • Medium:

    Monkeypod with cherry wood

  • Dimensions:

    26 1/2 x 15 x 7 1/4 inches

  • Credit Line:

    Wichita Art Museum, Gift of the artist and Blanche Carstenson

  • Object Number:

    1990.83

  • Display:

    Not Currently on Display


About the Artwork

Sculpture is like music: without rhythm it won’t work. A rhythmic piece does not have to be rounded, but it does have to flow. Even a straight line can have rhythm if it leads the viewer’s attention to other dimensions of the work. The viewer’s eyes must be drawn over the piece in a pattern preconceived by the artist. If someone gawks with a stony stare at your piece, either he is dead, or the piece is. Pray for the former. If the eye does not move, the piece is not successful.

                                                                                    Cecil Carstenson

                                                                                    The Craft and Creation of Wood Sculpture

                                                                                    Dover Publications, NY, 1981