Archive for March, 2023
Andrew Walker: Praises for Jim Haas and MacNeil’s “Sun Vow”
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Our post of March 9, 2023 shared Dr. Andrew Walker’s praise for Jim Haas’ recent Bio of Hermon MacNeil
Walker, since 2011 has been has been Director at the Amon Carter Museum of Fort Worth, Texas.
His knowledge of MacNeil is evident in the volume “Shaping the West.” MacNeil’s sculpture of the ‘Sun Vow’ graces its cover (see photo above). Published by the Denver Art Museum, Walker contributed the essay entitled: “Hermon Atkins MacNeil and the 1904 World’s Fair: A Monumental Program for the American West.” Praise from Andrew Walker constitutes worthy acclaim.
It is all in the faces – the ideals passed to a new generation.
While highlighting the work of Hermon Atkins MacNeil, Dr. Walker illustrates how the 1904 World’s Fair in St Louis included a monumental sculpture initiative. He does this with narrative and photo description of the major sculptures that formed the grounds, fountains, waterfalls and buildings of the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in Saint Louis. The current St. Louis Art Museum (where Walker was previously a curator) was the “Palace of Fine Arts” conceived by Cass Gilbert, architect of the fair grounds (and later the US Supreme Court Building). Over a century later, MacNeil’s three sculpture relief panels still look down from their vantage point above the three sets of doors at the main entrance.
The ‘Sun Vow’ at the MMA – NYC – with Daniel Chester French’s “Angel of Death” in relief in background (See also Webmaster’s <= Comment at left. The ‘Sun Vow’ at the MMA – NYC – with Daniel Chester French’s “Angel of Death” in relief in background (See also Webmaster’s <= Comment at left.
The more I study this sculpture (as other MacNeil pieces?) the more new details I find in MacNeil’s creations.
The photo at right shows MacNeil’s Sun Vow with Daniel Chester French’s “Angel of Death” in the background. French and MacNeil were colleagues and collaborators. The Angel of Death has grasped the hand of the sculptor.
[See more of this Daniel Chester French sculpture, CLICK HERE.]
Webmaster’s Comment: The beauty and ‘irony’ of the two sculptures together, long after the death of the two sculptors and the vanishing of the culture of the Sun Vow that MacNeil has memorialized, are a compounded and profound statement of the power of art and artists.
SOURCES:
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SHAPING THE WEST : American Sculptors of the 19th Century. With additional essays by Alice Levi Duncan, Thayer. Tolles, Peter Hassrick, Sarah E. Boehme, and Andrew Walker.
James E. Haas: Author & Historian of College Point
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James E. Haas is a fifth generation College Pointer and a graduate of St. John’s University in Jamaica, NY. He has written ten books, three on subjects related to the history of College Point. With a Masters Degree in Religious Education, Haas has written widely on church-related subjects, liturgy and prayer with and for children as well as religious education.
The biography has received glowing comments such as these from Andrew Walker:
James E. Haas tells a compelling story of a sculptor who made a tremendous, but underappreciated impact on the American cultural scene during his lifetime.The level of research is clearly a compassionate focus in a conventional biographical approach. MacNeil is not a Rodin or a Picasso where drama dictates his biography. Rather, his story reaches heights of dramatic impact in those decisions and efforts that charted the nations priorities and challenges.At times, this dramatic arc of MacNeil’s artistic activity is deeply connected to broader social and cultural life during times of change. MacNeil’s life after his experiences in the early 20th century continued as an expected life of a committed artist, and this biography does justice to his contributions, and his artistic achievement.Andrew Walker — Director, Amon Carter Museum of American Art. — Fort Worth, TX
To Honor Fallen Heroes: How a Small German-American Village in New York City Experienced the Great War (1)
