Tate Modern

American artist David Smith is one of the most important sculptors of the second half of the twentieth century. A contemporary and friend of Willem de Kooning and Arshile Gorky, Smith pioneered welding in sculpture. He is best known for his innovative and remarkably diverse large-scale metal pieces constructed from used machine parts, abandoned tools and scrap metal. Often executed in series, his sculptures are largely abstract but consistently evoke the human figure. The exhibition will feature about fifty works lent from public and private collections around the world.