Young Duck 1909 - 1923

This sculpture, Young Duck, of undetermined date, was made by Harry Dickinson Thrasher. It really has a playful quality to it. The surface texture gives the bird a tactile presence, like you could feel each subtle shift in form. The way the material—maybe bronze, maybe something else—catches light is so interesting. I love how it brings out the curves and swells of the duck’s body. It makes me wonder what kind of tools Thrasher used, or if he just used his hands to get those marks. The folds around the breastbone are pretty fantastic! The piece kind of reminds me of Constantin Brancusi’s sculptures. Both artists seem interested in capturing the essence of a form through abstraction. It’s almost as if they’re sharing a secret about how much you can say with so little.