Cut-out
Classification
metalwork
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Gift of Sullivan Goss-An American Gallery
Accession Number
2014-42-5
About this artwork
Trailing foliate vine with stylized flowerheads on a bordered rectangular panel
Art Historical Context
Lockwood de Forest’s *Cut-out* is a striking example of late-nineteenth-century American metalwork. Created between 1881 and 1890, the panel features a graceful trailing vine punctuated by stylized flowerheads, all contained within a crisp border. The openwork technique allows light and shadow to play across the surface, turning the metal into a delicate, almost lace-like screen. De Forest, an American artist deeply influenced by the Aesthetic Movement, spent much of the 1880s traveling and working in India. There he established workshops that blended Western design sensibilities with traditi...