This contemplative, if not melancholic, work by Calder depicts a naiad--a forest nymph traditionally associated with fresh water sources--positioning a tragic mask over a fountain head. The figure's downward gaze and deliberate action denote a sense of gravity. Part of an artistic dynasty, Calder began his artistic training in 1886 at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where he studied with Thomas Anshutz and Thomas Eakins. In 1890 he went to Paris, studying first at the Académie Julian and then at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. After two years he returned to Philadelphia and began teaching modeling at the Pennsylvania Academy. The artist became known for civic sculpted monuments and portrait busts of his artist friends including John Singer Sargent, George Bellows, and Robert Henri.
