Reaching Jaguar
sculptor
Anna Hyatt Huntington
(American, 1876 - 1973)
Datebefore 1918
Place MadeUnited States, North America
MediumCast bronze
Dimensions22.9 x 15.2 cm (9 x 6 in.)
ClassificationsSculpture
Credit LineIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
Accession numberS33w4
eMuseum ID722348
EmbARK ObjectID13483
TMS Source ID2413
Last Updated8/9/24
Status
Not on viewWeb CommentaryThis bronze sculpture shows a jaguar balancing carefully on a tree trunk. The feline’s taut muscles and intense gaze are brimming with kinetic energy. He has spotted his prey, and is moments away from attack.
The prominent American sculptor Anna Hyatt Huntington was well known for her depictions of animals. Operating in an artistic realm that was dominated by men, she was a trailblazer and won awards for her sculpture across the globe. Her bronze equestrian statue of Joan of Arc, located just outside of New York’s Central Park, was the first public monument created by a female artist in New York City. In addition, it was the first public monument to depict a woman in the city when it was erected in 1915. It seems apt that Isabella Stewart Gardner, another woman ahead of her time, would have collected the work of this pioneering artist.
The prominent American sculptor Anna Hyatt Huntington was well known for her depictions of animals. Operating in an artistic realm that was dominated by men, she was a trailblazer and won awards for her sculpture across the globe. Her bronze equestrian statue of Joan of Arc, located just outside of New York’s Central Park, was the first public monument created by a female artist in New York City. In addition, it was the first public monument to depict a woman in the city when it was erected in 1915. It seems apt that Isabella Stewart Gardner, another woman ahead of her time, would have collected the work of this pioneering artist.
BibliographyNotesCornelius C. Vermeule III et al. Sculpture in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 1977), p. 166, no. 211. (as before 1918)
American Sculpture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art: A catalogue of works by artists born between 1865 and 1885, vol. 2 (New York, 1999), pp. 603-05.
Greta Llanes, "Casting a Cat: Anna Hyatt Huntington's Reaching Jaguar," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 24 August 2021, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/blog/casting-cat-anna-hyatt-huntingtons-reaching-jaguar
American Sculpture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art: A catalogue of works by artists born between 1865 and 1885, vol. 2 (New York, 1999), pp. 603-05.
Greta Llanes, "Casting a Cat: Anna Hyatt Huntington's Reaching Jaguar," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 24 August 2021, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/blog/casting-cat-anna-hyatt-huntingtons-reaching-jaguar
MarksNotesInscribed (in script, rear of the trunk near the base): Anna V. Hyatt
Inscribed (in print, side of the base): GORHAM CO. FOUNDER 0477
Inscribed (in print, side of the base): GORHAM CO. FOUNDER 0477
ProvenanceNotesPurchased by Isabella Stewart Gardner from the artist Anna Hyatt Huntington (1876-1973), Cambridge for $45 probably before 1918.
