Mississippi Inscape, (sculpture).

Mississippi Inscape, (sculpture).

McGowin, Ed, 1938- , sculptor.

Mississippi Inscape, (sculpture).

Digital Reference:

Precast concrete, crushed obsidian with ceramic and found objects.

Approx. 15 ft. x 13 ft. 6 in. x 12 ft.

Two interlocking pyramids of precast concrete covered with crushed obsidian, and an inscape visible through an opening on each side of the piece. The forms display several terra-cotta colored ceramic tiles inscribed with excerpts from William Faulkner's "As I Lay Dying." On the interior, there are bronzed tools, articles of clothing, a steel-frame bed, and a wooden wagon.

Allegory -- Place -- Mississippi

Literature -- Faulkner

Object -- Furniture -- Bed

Architecture -- Vehicle -- Wagon

Outdoor Sculpture -- Mississippi -- Jackson

Administered by General Services Administration, Office of Public Buildings and Real Property, 100 West Capitol Street, Federal Building, Jackson, Mississippi 39201

Located McCoy Federal Building, 100 West Capitol Street, Plaza, Jackson, Mississippi

Text from commemorative plaque: ED MCGOWIN/MISSISSIPPI INSCAPE/A native of Mississippi, Ed McGowin set out to create a work of public/art reflecting the State's cultural heritage, as well as the character of/the region as a whole. The resulting sculpture was installed in 1979./It consists of two interlocking pyramids of precast concrete covered/with crushed obsidian, and an inscape visible through the opening on/each side of the piece. The simple forms display several ceramic tablets/inscribed with excerpts from William Faulkner's "As I Lay Dying." The/bronzed tools, articles of clothing, steel-framed bed, and wooden wagon/comprised the interior tableau create a visual metaphor for the/quotations on the exterior. The sculpture has numerous layers of/meaning. Commissioned by the Art-in-Architecture Program of the/General Services Administration, the work is an integral part of the/Dr. A. H. McCoy Federal Building./Art-in-Architecture Program/General Services Administration.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Mississippi survey, 1994.

Institute of Contemporary Art, University of Pennsylvania, "Urban Encounters: Art Architecture Audience," 1980.

For model see: 08581258.

The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

Control Number:

Horizon Information Portal 3.25_9382

Powered by SirsiDynix

About | © 2020 Smithsonian | Terms of Use | Privacy | Contact

SIRIS - Smithsonian Institution Research Information System