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Girl on a Chair

George Segal

Contemporary Art

George Segal was an innovator in sculpture known for his installations of white plaster figures with ghostly appearances. He depicted the dignity in everyday life, showing people poised at a bus stop, paused before a traffic intersection, or conversing on a park bench. Segal's work also took on political themes such as the Holocaust and gay pride. At the time this sculpture was created, the artist discussed its art historical references: "The chair is like a ladder with steps, the box is like a house, the girl is like a Greek caryatid holding up the roof . . . I've always liked the hardness and softness combined, this wedding of organic and geometric."

MEDIUM Plaster, wood and paints
DATES 1970
DIMENSIONS 36 x 24 x 11 3/4 in. (91.4 x 61.0 x 29.8 cm)  (show scale)
SIGNATURE Unsigned
COLLECTIONS Contemporary Art
ACCESSION NUMBER 78.213
CREDIT LINE Gift of Frederick E. Sherman
MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
CAPTION George Segal (American, 1924-2000). Girl on a Chair, 1970. Plaster, wood and paints, 36 x 24 x 11 3/4 in. (91.4 x 61.0 x 29.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Frederick E. Sherman, 78.213. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 78.213_view1_bw.jpg)
IMAGE overall, 78.213_view1_bw.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
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RIGHTS STATEMENT © artist or artist's estate
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