Pair of Busts: Man and Woman

Date1985-1989

Artist Shields Landon ("S. L.") Jones (1901-1997)

MediumWood and paint

DimensionsOverall, her: 9 x 6 5/8 x 6 1/2in. (22.9 x 16.8 x 16.5cm) and Overall, him: 9 1/4 x 6 1/2 x 5 1/8in. (23.5 x 16.5 x 13cm)

Credit LineGift of Ellin and Baron Gordon

Object number2006.701.3&4

DescriptionSeparate, blocky, painted woodcarvings representing the upper bodies of a man and a woman. Their arms are carved separately and attached, their heads rather over-sized. Both figures wear white shirts; hers has blue trim, and he wears a blue bow tie. Their eyes are blue with black pupils, their facial features wide and flattened, their hair black.
Label TextS. L. Jones was creating life-size busts and table-top groups of figures by 1975 but, after suffering a stroke in the early 1990s, he tended to concentrate on drawing rather than carving. Blocky proportions, high foreheads, projecting lips, and elongated, flattened ears are characteristics of his dimensional figural work.
ProvenanceBought directly from the artist by AARFAM's donors, Ellin and Baron Gordon, in 1989; given by the Gordons to AARFAM in 2006.