Seymour Fogel, American, 1911–1984, Sand Madonna, 1971, Acrylic and sand on canvas, 60 x 48 in., Saint Vincent College Collection, Gift of Carol and F. James McCarl. Photo: Richard Stoner.
In 1933, Seymour Fogel was employed as an assistant to Mexican muralist Diego Rivera when the artist was executing a commission for John D. Rockefeller, Jr. slated for the lobby of the RCA Building in New York. While disputes between Rockefeller and Rivera culminated in the mural’s destruction before it could be completed, Fogel’s time observing Rivera’s methods of creating socially conscious, large-scale work proved to be formative. Between 1936 and 1946 Fogel was awarded a variety of mural commissions through the Works Progress Administration and the Federal Arts Project. A staunch advocate for the integration of painting, sculpture, and architecture, Fogel was most interested in artwork that engaged the public sphere by enriching the communal spaces marked by the quotidian rhythms of life. Over the course of his 55-year career, Fogel’s work stylistically shifted from Social Realism to Geometric Abstraction and later to Transcendental Expressionism–ever dedicated to imaging what he understood as an ancient, perennial wisdom largely concealed during the modern era.
Fogel was captivated by archetypal symbols he believed could transcend iconographic codes and tap into what Swiss psychologist Carl Jung referred to as the collective unconscious. Employing these universal touchstones, Fogel believed viewers could intuitively comprehend the meaning of his work regardless of their cultural background. The image of a mother functioned as a preferred image for Fogel. Sand Madonna exhibits a strong sculptural quality communicated through the artist’s use of coarse sand contrasted against a vibrant red orange. The gentle, curvilineal form suggests the figure is holding a swaddled child. The materiality of Fogel’s piece recalls sand paintings integral to Navajo medicinal and ceremonial rituals as well as mandalas painstakingly executed by Tibetan Buddhist monks. Fogel’s innovative practice prompted him to incorporate a variety of other unorthodox media into his compositions including glass, plastics, and wax.
Fogel was captivated by archetypal symbols he believed could transcend iconographic codes and tap into what Swiss psychologist Carl Jung referred to as the collective unconscious. Employing these universal touchstones, Fogel believed viewers could intuitively comprehend the meaning of his work regardless of their cultural background. The image of a mother functioned as a preferred image for Fogel. Sand Madonna exhibits a strong sculptural quality communicated through the artist’s use of coarse sand contrasted against a vibrant red orange. The gentle, curvilineal form suggests the figure is holding a swaddled child. The materiality of Fogel’s piece recalls sand paintings integral to Navajo medicinal and ceremonial rituals as well as mandalas painstakingly executed by Tibetan Buddhist monks. Fogel’s innovative practice prompted him to incorporate a variety of other unorthodox media into his compositions including glass, plastics, and wax.
A 2015 survey of Fogel's work was assembled at the Grace Museum in Abilene, Texas. Click here to learn more.