Collection Online as of February 5, 2023

Boy and Panther Cub

1915

sculptor

Malvina Hoffman

(American, 1887–1966)

America, 20th century

Bronze

Overall: 171.5 cm (67 1/2 in.)

Bequest of John L. Severance 1942.797

Location

WT West Terrace

Fun Fact

The tender relationship between the boy and panther cub depicted here suggests harmony between humankind and nature.

Description

Female American artist Malvina Hoffman created this garden sculpture featuring a male youth holding a small panther cub with his left arm while dangling a bunch of grapes over its open mouth. This particular bronze cast was commissioned by prominent Cleveland industrialist John L. Severance and was given to the museum after his death.

Inscriptions

Inscription

Signed on base: Hoffman

Provenance

John L. Severance, Cleveland, Ohio.

Citations

Solender, Katherine. The American Way in Sculpture, 1890-1930. Cleveland, OH: Published by the Cleveland Museum of Art in cooperation with Indiana University Press, 1986. cat. #48, p. 48, repr.

Catalogue of the John L. Severance Collection: Bequest of John L. Severance, 1936. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1942. Mentioned: p. 32, cat. no. 30 archive.org

Conner, Janis C. Conner Rosenkranz LLC: 19th & 20th Century American Sculpture. New York, NY: Conner Rosenkranz LLC, 2013. Mentioned: p. 41

Czajkowski, Alexandra. “Exploring the Fine Arts Garden.” Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine 61, no. 3 (Summer 2021): 38-39. Reproduced and Mentioned: P. 39.

Exhibition history

Exhibition of the John L. Severance Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (November 12, 1942-March 14, 1943).

The American Way in Sculpture 1890-1930. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 12-October 19, 1986).