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Sculpture

Puck

1 of 6
Type
Sculpture(Opens in new tab)
Date
carved after 1854
Accession number
91.255
Maker
Harriet Goodhue Hosmer(Opens in new tab) (American, 1830–1908)
Dimensions
height: 31 in. (78.7 cm.)
Medium
marble
Description
Harriet Hosmer's Puck, a cherubic depiction of the character from William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, was one of her most popular sculptures. Some fifty versions of the piece were carved, including one for the Prince of Wales' rooms at Oxford. Hosmer, the most prominent member of a group of American women sculptors working in Rome in the mid-nineteenth century, may be best known for her adorable Puck, but many of her other works are monumental in scale and portray heroines from literature, classical mythology, and history. Hosmer was something of a trailblazer, combating a slew of obstacles placed before women wishing to become sculptors at the time. She overcame the difficulty of gaining admittance to anatomy classes and successfully defended her reputation from the sullying commentary of jealous colleagues. Indeed, Hosmer achieved financial success from her work early in her career, and her studio was a popular stop for many nineteenth-century notables, including, among others, Thomas Carlyle, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Alfred Tennyson, J. P. Morgan, Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, and various European aristocrats.
Credit
The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens. Purchased with funds from the Virginia Steele Scott Foundation
Department
American Art
Find out more
View in the Art Museum catalog(Opens in new tab)
One of the nineteenth century's most accomplished female artists, Harriet Hosmer gained a reputation not only as a talented sculptor but also as a pioneering advocate of women's rights. Her Puck, a cherubic depiction of the mischievous character from William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, was one of her most popular sculptures and exists in many versions. It contrasts with her monumental sculptures of heroines from literature, classical mythology, and history, such as Zenobia in Chains. Both Puck and Zenobia in Chains, however, demonstrate Hosmer's command of the marble medium and love of detail, such as the mushrooms supporting Puck and the delicate structure of his wings.

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