Object Details
Artist
Malcah Zeldis, born New York City 1931
Gallery Label
Malcah Zeldis refers to this painting as an "exultation of survival," painted after her recovery from cancer in 1986, the same year as the centennial celebration of the Statue of Liberty. She includes herself (in the red dress at the lower right) alongside American icons like Elvis and Miss America in a celebration of liberty and life—personally from her sickness, and universally for the diversity of Americans.Exhibition Label, Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2006
Publication Label
Malcah Zeldis refers to this painting as an "exultation of survival," painted after her recovery from cancer in 1986, the same year as the centennial celebration of the Statue of Liberty. Dozens of flags and more than one hundred figures, including famous Americans such as Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, Elvis Presley, and Marilyn Monroe stand with friends and famly of the New York artist to celebrate this icon of freedom. Zeldis has included herself, in a red dress, at the lower right.
Smithsonian American Art Museum: Commemorative Guide. Nashville, TN: Beckon Books, 2015.
Credit Line
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr.
Copyright
© 1987, Malcah Zeldis
Date
1987
Object number
1988.74.14
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Type
Painting
Folk Art
Medium
oil on corrugated cardboard
Dimensions
54 1/2 x 36 1/2 in. (138.4 x 92.7 cm)
See more items in
Smithsonian American Art Museum Collection
Department
Graphic Arts
On View
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center, 3rd Floor, 23B
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center, 3rd Floor
Data Source
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Topic
Figure group
Cityscape\New York\New York
Waterscape\harbor\New York Harbor
Ceremony\holiday\Fourth of July
Ceremony\other\fireworks
Link to Original Record
Record ID
saam_1988.74.14