The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 21, 2025

Source

1967

Tony Smith

(American, 1912–1980)
America
painted steel
Overall: 335.2 x 899.1 x 1036.3 cm (131 15/16 x 354 x 408 in.)
Gift of the Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company 2001.256
© Estate of Tony Smith / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Location: NG North Sculpture Garden

Did You Know?

The name of this sculpture was inspired by the French realist painter Gustave Courbet's The Source of the Loue (1864).

Description

Considered a forerunner of minimalism, Smith created monumental sculptures in geometric forms often inspired by nature. Source possesses a balance between mass and volume, creating a playful energy that spills over into the public space.
  • 1967–1977?
    Artist's studio
    1977?–2001
    Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company, Cleveland, OH
    2001–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Lippard, Lucy R. Tony Smith. New York: H.N. Abrams, 1972.
    Storr, Robert, John Keenen, and Joan Pachner. Tony Smith: Architect, Painter, Sculptor. New York: The Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1998.
    Voorhies, James, and Sarah Auld. Tony Smith Sculpture: Catalogue Raisonné. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2024. Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 312-313, no. 54.01
    Arzuaga, Rachel and Beth Edelstein. "Building and Grounds. Encounter the Grounds Anew: Interpretation and Conservation's Updated Outdoor Map.” Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine 65, no. 1 (2025): 6-7. Reproduced and Mentioned: p. 22 archive.org
  • {{cite web|title=Source|url=false|author=Tony Smith|year=1967|access-date=21 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2001.256