Ad Manum, Ad Dorsum: An Exhibit at the ICAA's Cast Hall

Artist Darryl Babatunde Smith's metalpoints, on view through April 28th

On view from March 30th-April 28th at the ICAA's Historic Cast Hall is an exhibit of work from artist Darryl Babatunde Smith, including works inspired by the ICAA's own 19th century collection of plaster sculptures. The Philadelphia based artist exhibits a collection of metalpoints, a drawing technique popularized during the Renaissance that remains a vibrant part of Smith's current day artistic practice. The medium has remained relatively unchanged over the centuries, with artists still using fine styli of silver, gold, or bronze to create hair-thin lines, layered to bring forth form on paper. Further testament to Smith's excellence as an artist is that metalpoint is a permanent medium, as once metal is put to paper, its marking is not erasable, and in fact will only darken over time.

Smith started making art as a way of interpreting foreign languages as opposed to translating them in English. He studied French, German, and Latin in high school and later began to learn Ancient and Modern Greek on his own. The works in Ad Manum, Ad Dorsum draw influence from Smith's knowledge of Latin and Greek, as he immerses himself both in the visual and written culture of antiquity. He references ancient textual allusions through his works to connect personal narratives with Greco-Roman ideologies and philosophies.

He studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts where he completed his BFA in Painting, and at the New York Academy of Art where he obtained his MFA in Drawing an Anatomy. His works have been exhibited nationally (Philadelphia, Hillsdale, New York City) and internationally in Reykjavík, Iceland and Athens, Greece.

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Ad Manum, Ad Dorsum is on view at the ICAA's Cast Hall gallery through April 28th, and is open to the public by appointment. Please contact [email protected] to visit.

Visitors may also attend a public open house on Saturday, April 16th from 10:30-5pm, with no RSVP necessary.

Smith will be giving a virtual artist's talk on the exhibition on April 7th at 6pm ET, which is free and open to the public. More information to register is available here.

Thanks to our Lead Cast Hall Exhibition Sponsor, Jared Goss, for his support.