David Smith

Graham was an influential mentor in the 1930’s, taking Smith to meet Gorky (the 3 planned a collaborative painting, unrealised), introducing him to Davis and Willem de Kooning, and giving him a welded sculpture by Julio Gonzalez. Diller was a fellow-student, through whom he met Avery and the Ukrainian Futurist, Burlyuk. Pollock and Gottlieb were also met in pre-war New York, while Kline and Leslie were further Cedar Bar drinking colleagues in the 1950’s. O’Hara interviewed him. Motherwell, Frankenthaler and Noland were all close friends; Caro got a supply of his raw materials following his fatal accident.