Sun Worshipper, Full Scale Plaster Model, [Plaster]
Dublin Core
Title
Sun Worshipper, Full Scale Plaster Model, [Plaster]
Subject
Figure sculpture, American--20th century
Description
Sitting with her hands oh her left knee and her head back looking toward the sky, the Sun Worshipper is a topless female with bare feet and a skirt covering her legs.
"The mysterious Sun Worshipper, originally designed in 1937, was enlarged and cast to Full-Scale in 1994. Fredericks treated this enigmatic, contemporary figure a classical manner but the result has a spiritual, ritualistic quality. The lower limbs of the female figure, nude from the waist up, are draped with a wide skirt. Her knees are spread wide, with toes and feet together. Her open hands are spread, palms up, and her upturned face is parallel with the sky so that her throat is stretched almost beyond physical capability. The figures bold form is deeply carved, with angular, archaized features, ranging from relatively naturalistic hands and feet to the striated, abstract forms of her hair, which are echoes in the faceted drape of her skirt. The body itself is sensitively rendered with lifelike proportions and curves. Muscular, solid, and androgynous, Sun Worshipper is a powerful figure captured in a vulnerable moment. Like the dragon, this figure is curled upon itself and turned psychologically inward, but the dramatic gesture of the upturned face suggests a spiritual quest, a philosophical concept that Fredericks has explored elsewhere."
Fredericks, Suzanne P. "Marshall M. Fredericks, Sculptor", Saginaw Valley State University, 2003. p. 14-15 Photos on pages 42 and 185
"The mysterious Sun Worshipper, originally designed in 1937, was enlarged and cast to Full-Scale in 1994. Fredericks treated this enigmatic, contemporary figure a classical manner but the result has a spiritual, ritualistic quality. The lower limbs of the female figure, nude from the waist up, are draped with a wide skirt. Her knees are spread wide, with toes and feet together. Her open hands are spread, palms up, and her upturned face is parallel with the sky so that her throat is stretched almost beyond physical capability. The figures bold form is deeply carved, with angular, archaized features, ranging from relatively naturalistic hands and feet to the striated, abstract forms of her hair, which are echoes in the faceted drape of her skirt. The body itself is sensitively rendered with lifelike proportions and curves. Muscular, solid, and androgynous, Sun Worshipper is a powerful figure captured in a vulnerable moment. Like the dragon, this figure is curled upon itself and turned psychologically inward, but the dramatic gesture of the upturned face suggests a spiritual quest, a philosophical concept that Fredericks has explored elsewhere."
Fredericks, Suzanne P. "Marshall M. Fredericks, Sculptor", Saginaw Valley State University, 2003. p. 14-15 Photos on pages 42 and 185
Creator
Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998
Date
1994
Rights
Use of this image requires permission from the Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum
Type
Sculpture
Coverage
University Center (Mich.)
Sculpture Item Type Metadata
Physical Dimensions
69" h
Materials
Plaster
Catalog Number
2000.002
Object Location
Sculptors Studio
Provenance
01/15/2000 gifted to MFSM
March/April 2003 relocated to Sculptor's Studio
March/April 2003 relocated to Sculptor's Studio
Files
Citation
Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998, “Sun Worshipper, Full Scale Plaster Model, [Plaster],” Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum, accessed April 25, 2024, https://omeka.svsu.edu/items/show/5520.