The Mentor: Famous American Sculptors, Vol. 1, Num. 36, Serial No. 36 — John Shaqi
The Mentor: Famous American Sculptors, Vol. 1, Num. 36, Serial No. 36Taft, Lorado
General
The Mentor: Famous American Sculptors, Vol. 1, Num. 36, Serial No. 36
Taft, Lorado
Sculptors -- United States; Sculpture, American
Augustus Saint Gaudens, like so many of our best citizens, was a
product of another land; of two others, in fact. Born in Dublin in 1848
of a French father and an Irish mother, he represented an unusually
fortunate combination of two artistic races. The humble family settled
in 1850 in New York, where the boy was early apprenticed to a cameo
cutter, supplementing his childish efforts with a rigorous training in
the drawing classes of Cooper Union. In 1880, after some years abroad,
he exhibited at the Salon his remarkable figure of Admiral Farragut,
now in Madison Square, New York, which still remains one of his finest
works. This statue--and its harmonious pedestal--met with instant
success, and was followed by a series of triumphant works, so novel and
original, so significant and admirably perfected, that the master’s
position at the head of the profession in this country was constantly
reaffirmed to the day of his death.
[Illustration: DEACON CHAPIN, BY SAINT GAUDENS
_At Springfield, Massachusetts._]
Indeed, in reviewing the life of this great artist, one asks what
other sculptor of modern times has produced such a succession of
notable achievements as the “Farragut”; the “Lincoln” of Chicago; the
“Deacon Chapin” of Springfield, Massachusetts; the “Adams Memorial”
in Washington; the “Shaw Memorial”; the “Logan”; the “Sherman”, and
finally the seated “Lincoln.” Add to this the countless exquisite
medallions, the delightfully decorative high relief portraits, and,
perhaps most beautiful of all, that angelic brood of which the “Amor
Caritas” is the type and culmination, and where shall we look for a
more individual expression? Rodin himself, with all his contortions,
has not produced so much beauty nor demonstrated himself more
“original.”
[Illustration: Copyright, 1905, by De W. C. Ward.
AUGUSTUS SAINT GAUDENS IN HIS STUDIO
_From a painting by Kenyon Cox._]
To different moods these great works make their differing appeals.
The heroic “Lincoln,” with its strong, gaunt frame and its majestic
head bowed in sympathetic tenderness; the sturdy “Chapin,” wrapped in
a voluminous cloak and self sufficiency; the mysterious, inscrutable
genius of the Adams tomb; the rhythmic momentum of the colored regiment
with its fated leader riding serenely, square shouldered, and level
eyed to his doom; the glorious “Victory” of the Sherman group, the most
spiritual, most ethereal of all sculptured types,--what an array are
these! What wealth to have brought to our national ideals!
DANIEL CHESTER FRENCH
[Illustration: BIRTHPLACE OF G. G. BARNARD
_Barnard was born at Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, where his parents were
temporarily residing in 1863. The sculptor is really a Westerner._]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account