Stinger

1967-68 / 1999

American, 1912-1980

Initially trained as an architect, Tony Smith first experimented with sculpture when he was nearly fifty. Stinger, one of his most monumental works, recalls an ancient structure such as a fortress, with three closed sides and one open side inviting the viewer to cross a threshold to its interior. Composed of cross-sections of tetrahedral and octahedral shapes, the sculpture combines a simple plan and complex elevation; resting on a single point it appears to hover above the ground. Originally called One Gate, Smith titled Stinger after the popular cocktail that is deceptively sweet but slyly intoxicating.

Steel, painted black

6 ft. 6 in. x 33 ft. 4 1/4 in. x 33 ft. 4 1/4 in.

Gift of Jane Smith

2004.117

Provenance: Estate of Tony Smith

Photo: Paul Macapia

Now on view at the Olympic Sculture Park

Resources

Exhibition HistoryNew York, New York, Paula Cooper Gallery, Tony Smith, May 1 - Aug. 9, 1999.

Boston, Massachusetts, Arts on the Point, University of Massachusetts, 2002 - 2004.

Published ReferencesSmith, Kiki, et al. Not an Object. Not a Monument. The Complete Large-Scale Sculpture of Tony Smith. London: Steidl Publishers MM, 2006; p. 92, reproduced pp. 60-61.

Seattle Art Museum: Bridging Cultures. London: Scala Publishers Ltd. for the Seattle Art Museum, 2007; pp. 78-79, reproduced p. 79.

Ishikawa, Chiyo, ed. A Community of Collectors: 75th Anniversary Gifts to the Seattle Art Museum. Seattle: Seattle Art Museum, 2007; reproduced p. 99.

Corrin, Lisa Graziose, et al. Olympic Sculpture Park. Seattle: Seattle Art Museum, 2007; reproduced pp. 44-45.

Gates, Mimi Gardner, ed. Seattle’s Olympic Sculpture Park: A Place for Art, Environment, and an Open Mind. Seattle: Seattle Art Museum, in association with University of Washington Press, 2021; pp. 190, 51, 69, 101-2, 114, reproduced pp. 14, 52, 103.

Seattle Art Museum respectfully acknowledges that we are on Indigenous land, the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people. We honor our ongoing connection to these communities past, present, and future.

Learn more about Equity at SAM