While studying painting at the Art Students League in New York City, David Smith supplemented his income with welding work, then pivoted to making sculpture after seeing pictures of welded sculptures by Julio González and Pablo Picasso. Smith’s monumental welded metal sculptures are frequently associated with Abstract Expressionism, and their gestural, painted surfaces challenge the idea that sculpture and painting should be treated as separate practices.

"Zig V" is one of eight works in Smith’s “Zig” series, whose title refers to ziggurats, or the stepped pyramids of ancient Mesopotamia. Smith’s energetic application of high-gloss automotive paint enlivens the surfaces of the sculpture’s various geometric forms. Together, the hand-painted effects and industrial materials of "Zig V" spark a dialogue between surface and form, representing a culmination of Smith’s decades-long exploration of painted sculpture.