1977

Portrait of David (David Gilhooly)

American, 1930 - 1992

Sculptor, ceramic artist, and teacher, Robert Arneson was one of the leaders of the California Funk movement. His whimsical portraiture and self-portraiture included not only a likeness, but also references to the subject’s vocation, personality, or life history. David is a portrait of David Gilhooly, Arneson’s former student and assistant at the University of California. Gilhooly is fond of using frogs in various sizes and disguises in his own ceramics, so Arneson chose a green, froglike glaze for this monumental head.