Name/Title
Maria do Carmo Mirandan da Cunha (Portrait of Carmen Miranda)Entry/Object ID
2025.16.1.a-bDescription
A large, vibrant ceramic sculpture of Carmen Miranda, from the torso up. Carmen is wearing a yellow shirt with green, red, and blue small glass pieces in a striped pattern on the bust and sleeves. She is wearing silver bedazzled bangles on both arms. Her head is oversized, and she is wearing a purple head wrap with bananas, oranges, apples, leaves, and an entire bird coming out of the top of her wrap. She has an additional turquoise string of beads and a tassel around her waist, and orange floral earrings. She is sitting on a custom, half-circle orange stand.Type of Sculpture
Free StandingArtwork Details
Medium
CeramicSubject Person or Organization
Maria do Carmo Miranda da CunhaCollection
Art CollectionAcquisition
Accession
2025.16Source or Donor
Paula TurkAcquisition Method
GiftCredit Line
Gift in Memory of Ross TurkMade/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Tony NatsoulasRole
SculptorDate made
2000Time Period
21st CenturyLexicon
Nomenclature 4.0
Nomenclature Primary Object Term
SculptureNomenclature Class
ArtNomenclature Category
Category 08: Communication ObjectsDimensions
Dimension Description
SculptureHeight
48 inWidth
28 inDepth
41 inDimension Description
BaseHeight
35 inWidth
19-3/4 inDepth
13-1/2 inCondition
Overall Condition
Very GoodInterpretative Labels
Label
Tony Natsoulas is a ceramic sculptor whose work centers on large-scale figurative forms. Since completing his Master of Fine Arts degree in 1985, he has dedicated his career to exploring the expressive possibilities of clay and creating sculptures that invite connection through character, humor, and narrative.
His interest in ceramics began during his undergraduate years at the University of California, Davis, where he studied with Robert Arneson. Arneson’s approach to clay—irreverent, inventive, and deeply rooted in the figure—left a lasting impact on Natsoulas and helped shape the direction of his own practice.
Over the years, his sculptures have been exhibited widely and are included in museum and gallery collections across the United States and abroad. His work has also been recognized by institutions such as the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, which recently added one of his large-scale pieces to its collection. In 2004, the Smithsonian included him in its list of 100 notable craft artists in the country.
