Second Song
Kay SAGE
(American, 1898-1963)
Second Song
Date1943
Mediumoil on canvas
Dimensionsoverall: 24 x 18 in. (61 x 45.7 cm)
frame: 28 × 22 × 1 1/2 in. (71.1 × 55.9 × 3.8 cm)
ClassificationPAINTINGS
Credit LineSBMA, Gift of Estate of Kay Sage Tanguy
Object number1964.32
Subject(s)
- landscape
- architecture
Collection
- 20th century American
- American
Sub-Collection(s)
- Surrealism
- American
On View
On viewCollections
Label TextAn American who grew up in Europe, Sage was a member of the Surrealist group, having been recruited by Andre Breton. Faced with the impending threat of a Nazi invasion of France, she returned to the United States in 1939 and from there helped to arrange visas for friends trying to escape France. By 1943, she and her husband Yves Tanguy were living in rural Connecticut, and this painting resembles an angel perched on a tombstone, a common sight in graveyards across New England. Its deep sadness might be a reflection on the tragedies unfolding in Europe because of the Nazis.
