ELIZABETH KORNHAUSER: As important as Laurent was, as a pioneering American Modernist sculptor who
introduced direct carving, he’s not as well-known as he deserves to be. Laurent’s carved chest
is an extraordinary piece, carved out of the hard wood of black walnut.
It really shows the beginning of this young Modernist artist’s move toward introducing
the direct-carving style.
I think he really approached it as a very personal, almost autobiographical piece.
KORNHAUSER: You’ll see at the top, this beautiful view of figures strolling along
Brooklyn Heights, with the East River in the background.
And then just below that is a sweeping and beautiful view of the Brooklyn Bridge, which
KORNHAUSER: Many of the panels feature scenes that have to do with the coast of Maine.
This beautify carved train, which was the train that one took to southern Maine.
Hamilton Easter Field, along with Laurent, visited Ogunquit, Maine and in 1911, in the
same year that Robert completed this chest of drawers, they would found the now famous
Ogunquit School and immediately attracted leading New York-based modern artists.
And they created these wonderful small fishing shacks, which they then furnished withlocally-acquired
Americana, in the form of quilts, hooked rugs, early American furniture, American folk-art
objects—weather vanes, carvings, decoys.
The new direct-carving tradition was a complete rebellion against the sculpture of the past.
In folk art, the narrative, the emotion, the family unity in the paintings, the direct
approach of the painting style was very appealing to modern artists, who were really seeking
inspiration from art that was more visceral and direct.
The chest really is a kind of a
free-flowing, inspired-at-the-moment, work of art, but also inspired by folk art of the
past and all manner of ancient art.
Laurent is really celebrated as one of the most important collectors of American folk art
He was a catalyst for gathering modern artists at the Ogunquit School and continued to produce
really innovative, cutting-edge Modernist sculpture.
This influence and exchange between early American folk art and Modernism came to define
American modern art.
And vice versa, these modern artists are responsible for defining what we think of American folk
as being today.