Jo Davidson
Born 30 March 1883
Died 2 January 1952
Active: 1900 - 1947
Country of birth and death: United States
Sculptor
Born in New York of Russian Jewish descent. From around 1900 he studied at the Art Students' League and with Hermon Atkins MacNeil. In 1907 Davidson moved to Paris to study sculpture at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. On his return to the USA, he was introduced to Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney who became an early patron.
From 1911 Davidson received solo exhibitions, chiefly of his portrait busts. These formed the cornerstone of his practice although he also completed a number of commissions for statues and memorials. Davidson received a number of honours and awards including, the National Academy of Design's Maynard Prize (1934), and a major retrospective hosted by the American Academy of Arts and Letters (1947). His work is included in the National Gallery of Art and National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.
Davidson was active politically and chaired the Independent Citizens Committee of Artists, Scientists, and Professional and co-chaired the Progressive Citizens of America. In 1951 he published 'Between Sittings: an informal autobiography' (The Dial Press, NY 1951).
Exhibitions, Meetings, Awards and other Events
Exhibited at Exhibition of Sculpture by Jo Davidson (Leicester Galleries), 1914
June 1914
Exhibited at The Exhibition of the Royal Academy of Arts (Summer Exhibition), 1768-
1927
Exhibited once, one work (The Late F-M the earl of Ypres, KP, CCB, OM, bust, stone, cat. no. 1667)
Sources
Ernest Brown & Phillips Ltd., The Leicester Galleries. An index of 1422 catalogues of exhibitions of European Modern Art and 20th Century British Art, held between 1902 and 1977
http://www.ernestbrownandphillips.ltd.uk (accessed 17 July 2019)
Citing this record
'Jo Davidson', Mapping the Practice and Profession of Sculpture in Britain and Ireland 1851-1951, University of Glasgow History of Art and HATII, online database 2011 [http://sculpture.gla.ac.uk/view/person.php?id=ann_1288618387, accessed 23 Sep 2023]
