Smiling Figure (Sonriente)

This clay figure has the widest smile in the museum. Its arms are raised, one hand open and the other closed as if it once held a rattle. The head is flattened and wide, with a tall, decorated headdress, and the whole body seems to be leaning into a dance. Many figures like this were made on the Gulf Coast of Mexico over several centuries. Their meaning has not been settled. They may have been connected with music, festival or celebration, or with ideas about joy that we no longer fully understand. Whatever their purpose, they are a rare thing in the ancient art of any region: figures that look plainly, openly happy.

Look closely

1. Look at the headdress. What shapes are cut into it?
2. Look at the hands. What might each of them be doing?
3. Try to hold a straight face while you look at its smile.

While you sit

Something here is very glad. You don’t need to know why to be glad with it.

Your seat in the galleries: a terracotta bench curved upward at both ends, like a grin.