David Smith

In this slick installment in Phaidon’s Focus series on modern artists, Pachner, a veteran contributor to former monographs on the artist, outlines Smith’s (1906-1965) pivotal career as a sculptor of evocative structures that both refined abstraction and crucially advanced welding as a sculptural practice in the U.S. As one who “fundamentally recast the artist’s role and persona” and “altered the course of modern art,” such a foundational introduction to Smith—broad, concise, accessible, and up-to-date—has long been overdue. Compressed sections map his style and technique, from the eclecticism of his earliest structures (assembled out of miscellaneous junk, such as “Agricola Head,” which is supported by an old bombshell case), to the heroic vigor of his late work, most notably the stainless steel “Cubi” series, among the sculptor’s last before his death in a car accident at age 59. Pachner’s overviews of prominent sculptures provide essential context and perspective. Best of all are her short topical discussions of Smith’s photography, drawings, abstract stencil “sprays,” and poetry, which reveal the sheer breadth and clarity of his vision, one that “refused to be limited by the preconceived boundaries of any medium.” 120 color illustrations. (Mar.)