Search Results for "George Washington statue"
CLICK HERE to see March for George Floyd as they pass
George Washington by Hermon A. MacNeil.
Above the rally, MacNeil’s likeness of General Washington guarded the rear flanks of the marchers.
Protesters marched at Washington Square Park in Manhattan on Monday. (June 9, 2020) [Credit…Demetrius Freeman for The New York Times]
The photo shows H. A. MacNeil‘s statue of George Washington looking down on 1000’s of Protesters as they remember George Floyd and march for Justice two weeks after his death at the hands of four Minneapolis Police officers.
MacNeil’s statue has seen many protests in its 104 years up on that pedestal of the arch, BUT nothing as moving as this. Alexander Sterling Calder‘s statue of President Washington looks on from the left at the crowd. (FOR Bernie Sanders Rally in 2016, CLICK HERE)
Protests continue nationwide, with signs of an ebb after dark.
Two weeks after George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis, demonstrations against police violence continued to fill the streets of cities and towns across the country on Monday.
About 1,000 protesters gathered in Los Angeles near a memorial for those killed by the police. Thousands more called for police reforms before a City Council meeting in Charlotte, N.C. And more than 1,000 made their way to a march that began in Washington Square Park in Manhattan.
“This is a young, young revolution,” said Vidal Guzman, 29, as he led marchers down Fifth Avenue in New York. “These are teenagers, people in their 20s, 30-year-olds. We have energy. We believe in what we’re doing, and we’re not going to let up.”
Still, there were signs in parts of the country that the demonstrations that have raged through cities after dark over the past two weeks appeared to be ramping down in many places.
PHILADELPHIA – Another BLM Protest march passes the March down the Ben Franklin Parkway from the Art Museum to City Hall.
The Rally-goers pass between the two 60 foot columns of MacNeil, Civil War Soldiers and Sailors Monument
PHILADELPHIA — Thousands of people demanding justice for George Floyd flooded the streets of downtown Philadelphia on Saturday, chanting “No justice, no peace!”
Demonstrators gathered near the Philadelphia Museum of Art and its famous “Rocky” steps before setting off for the City Hall area, with the line of marchers stretching for several city blocks along the tree-lined Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
The protesters circled City Hall, clapping and shouting, “Black Lives Matter!” as some residents of an apartment building held signs on their balconies reading “BLM” and “Keep Going, Philly,” the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
To police officers and National Guard members, they chanted: “What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!”
Qadir Sabur, 22, handing out water and snacks and holding a sign that read “Don’t just say Black Lives Matter, show us,” said that in addition to opposition to police brutality, African Americans in the city should benefit from the same opportunities in jobs and education.
SOLDIERS AND SAILORS MONUMENT Philadelphia
Philadelphia – Hermon MacNeil – “Soldiers And Sailors Monument” – South pylon or Sailors side – Being photographed by Dan Leininger, webmaster).
PHILADELPHIA —->>>
~ “Civil War Soldiers and Sailors Monument” ~ Soldiers side North Pylon
Photos: Solidarity on The Square protest in Carlisle PA on Saturday (June 6, 2020)
“I’m not just seeing blacks come together today as one,” he said, “I’m seeing everyone coming together as one,” he told the Inquirer.
By late afternoon, many protesters had left but others lingered around the Art Museum area or along the parkway. Smaller demonstrations were held in other areas, including one by the African American Museum in Philadelphia near Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell.
City officials earlier announced street closures, saying much of the city center, from the Delaware River to the Schuylkill River, would be closed to vehicles. A curfew will be in effect again overnight, from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., during which time only people with essential duties are allowed out.
Smaller groups also marched in other cities around the state, including several hundred in Pittsburgh and the surrounding area.
Floyd, who was black, died on May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee into his neck even as he pleaded for air and stopped moving. His death has sparked protests over police treatment of African Americans and racial injustice nationwide
Pennsylvania Governor speaks on the Rally s and needed reforms for Pennsylvania: CLICK HERE:
MacNeil Month 2022 ~ Week 1 ~ Cecelia MacNeil’s alarm for the Washington Arch in 1974.
Posted by: | CommentsTwenty-seven years after Hermon MacNeil’s death, Cecelia Weick MacNeil, his second-wife, wrote a series of three articles which she entitled:
“Sculptor Americanus:
HERMON ATKINS MACNEIL”
Cecelia MacNeil, RN (1945). Born Cecelia Weick in 1897. She served as a nurse in WWI in the European theater. She married Karl Weick in about 1920.
Cecelia opens the first of three articles with memories of her 12th Birthday in 1909.
Born in 1897, Cecelia Weick told the story of first the day that she ever heard the name of “Hermon Atkins MacNeil”
NOTE: Thirty-seven years later … Hermon would ask her to marry him.
As a birthday surprise, her father took her to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Ascending into the American Wing, they sat down on a bench near MacNeil’s sculpture group of “The Sun Vow.” Sixty-four years later, Cecelia described their visit to that sculpture this way:
Owen Schweers, my own grandson, in front of “The Sun Vow” that Cecelia Weick and her father saw on her 12th Birthday. He visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City about 110 Years after Cecelia. That particular casting of MacNeil’s statue was placed there by Daniel Chester French.
“The Sun Vow portrays two Indians, elder and younger, chief and future brave, grandfather and grandson. The grandfather, his body still subtle and strong, is weary just the same. The viewer knows that the chieftain’s feathered head-dress … will never again be worn. The old Indian holds this symbol of authority on his lap as he presses the young Indian to him. The grandchild holds an arrowless bow, symbolizing the celebration of coming of age in the in Indian lore but transcending the culture of any age. For when the young brave is able to shoot an arrow into the son, far enough away so that its decent to earth passes unseen, then he has attained manhood.
After at least five minutes of silence my father commented.
‘Ceil, the man who created this work is surely one of the greatest American Sculptors. Never, never forget his name.’
I am still a romantic. My father’s words were to be part of my destiny. 37 years later I married Hermon Atkins MacNeil.”
Sculptor AMERICANUS
CECELIA opened her first of three articles with those memories of her 12th Birthday. Continuing, she describes her sculptor, hero, and sunset-partner with the following phrases:
The Sculptor:
- MODESTY was so much a part of Hermon MacNeil
- Will my words of praise cause his spirit to stir ?
- Will my words cause his truly American soul to BLUSH?
- A successful bronze gives the sculptor a few steps toward immortality.
- A Creator of Memorials, Coins and Medals
- Time has made almost Hermon a forgotten American type …
- an extinct species
- whose works are ravaged by time, corrosion, spoilage …
- Hermon loved sculpting American Indians in their naturalness and beauty.
- Cecelia cites Jean Stansbury Holden’s description of Hermon in 1907 as:
- a boyish, slender, medium height, with large eyes that meet you with a twinkle …
- a serious sculptor when working …
- without pretense of his accomplishments …
- When keeps his medals from:
- Chicago Exposition – 1893;
- Paris Exposition – 1900
- Pan-American Exposition, Buffalo, NY – 1901
- Louisiana Purchase Exposition, St Louis – 1904
- and numerous others …
- IN DRAWERS in his studio, and rubs off some of the tarnish before showing them
- TRULY without Pretension or POMP.
AMERICANUS:
Quoting Jean Stansbury Holden she adds,
“While his work shows this variety in subject and treatment, one quality runs through it all; Whatever he touches is, in its very essence American; it smacks of the soil.” 1
Mrs. MacNeil then suggests:
“American history can be studied by totaling up Hermon’s works. This can be seen by mentioning a mere scattering of examples — The Pony Express, McKinley, The Pilgrim Fathers, Pere Marquette, Ezra Cornell, George Rogers Clark, the eastern pediment of the United States Supreme Court Building — and the most familiar and relevant of all, the marble of Washington as Commander-in-Chief, which along with Stirling Calder’s figure of Washington as President, graces Stanford White’s Washington Arch in Greenwich Village. (bold added).
Source: Cecelia MacNeil with Dr. Allen Nestle. “Sculptor Americanus: Hermon Atkins MacNeil”. (First in a Series of Three), The Antiques Journal, April 1974, p. 54.
BUT then Cecelia sounded a shrill alarm for the Washington Arch. Pointing out 1974 photos showing decades of decay. Air pollution. traffic (Cars, buses) traveled through the arch for over 75 years. Cleaning by abrasive sandblasting and eroded the soft marble of both statues by MacNeil and Calder.
Figure 6 shows the toll on MacNeil’s statue of Washington’s pitted face.
She writes:
“Washington’s nose has been carelessly damaged by thoughtless sandblasting (figure 6). Sandblasting marble! Now th first President resembles a leper. Aldolph Block, former student of Hermon, reknowned (sic) president of the National Sculpture Society (as Hermon was on two different occasions) despairs over the disaster to this historical landmark. Smog from the air, vandalism, time, such factors can be expected. But destruction such as Washington has suffered, accidental as it may have been, seems all too contemporary.”
Over the years Cecelia MacNeil wrote many letters to the responsible officials seemingly hopeless battle.” Her complaints as well as Mr. Block’s were “for all intents and purposes, ignored.
Cecelia shares her familiarity with her late partner by suggesting:
1916 Photo of the installation of the MacNeil statue. Thia appears to have the statue sitting in the right hand leg of the Arch. The left leg is where it was permanently installed. Photo Credit: John Gomez, NYC. [ https://i0.wp.com/hermonatkinsmacneil.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/MacNeil-Washington-Arch-1.jpeg?resize=799%2C1024&ssl=1 ]
“One can NOT imagine Hermon and his fellow sculptors ignoring Washington’s face. In no time at all a group of them, most of whom worked with Hermon, would have a scaffold up. A roster would include (Phillip) Martiny, Daniel Chester French, Augustus St. Gaudens, Alexander Stirling Calder, giants all. I can see Hermon chewing on a small cigar, making jokes.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This concludes
Part 1 of MacNeil Month.
In Part 2 we will examine the
History and RESTORATION of the Washington Arch and the
two Washington Statues.
~~~~~~~~~~~
READ MORE: History of Washington Arch by New York Architecture
~~~~~~~~~~~
FOOTNOTES:
Traffic in the 1950s
- Holden, Jean Stansbury (October 1907). “The Sculptors MacNeil“. The World’s Work: A History of Our Time XIV: 9403–9419. [Retrieved from GOOGLE eBooks]
- Cecelia MacNeil with Dr. Allen Nestle. “Sculptor Americanus: Hermon Atkins MacNeil”. (First in a Series of Three), The Antiques Journal, April 1974, pp. 10-13, 54.
- Cecelia MacNeil with Dr. Allen Nestle. “Sculptor Americanus: Hermon Atkins MacNeil”. (Second in a Series of Three), The Antiques Journal, May 1974, pp. 28-31.
- Cecelia MacNeil with Dr. Allen Nestle. “Sculptor Americanus: Hermon Atkins MacNeil”. (Third in a Series of Three), The Antiques Journal, June 1974, pp. 32-35, 51.
- Lynn H. Burnett. (Editor’s Comments:)“Hermon Atkins MacNeil in Historical Perspective”. The Antiques Journal April 1974, pp. 4, 5, 48.
~~~~~~~
Related posts:
WASHINGTON ARCH in the 1920’s
- INDEPENDENCE DAY Images ~ from Hermon A. MacNeil (5) Here are a few images of Independence from Hermon Atkins…
- Washington Statues “Bleeding” with Red Paint! MacNeil & Calder works defaced. (5) We were saddened to hear that “red paint” was splattered…
- The death of Carol Brooks MacNeil and Hermon MacNeil’s remarriage. (5) Cecelia W. Muench MacNeil In 1944 Carol Louise Brooks MacNeil…
- Happy (actual) Birthday, Mr. Washington! ~~~ ~~~ Visit New York City for MacNeil Month ~~~ (#8) (4) George Washington February 22, 1732 Pictured below is Hermon A. …
- MacNeil’s “General George Washington” shows up on “Forgotten New York” virtual tour. (4) On this 281st anniversary of the birth of George Washington…
- Senator Bernie Sanders Calls for a Political Revolution at Washington Arch. (4) NEW YORK CITY — In Washington Square Park last evening,…
Washington Arch ~ ~ An Update
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A WASHINGTON ARCH UPDATE:
The concerns expressed by Cecelia MacNeil and Adolf Block in 1974 were not isolated. As previously discussed here, the two statues of George Washington on the Arch in Greenwich Village had suffered severe deterioration from sandblasting, air pollution, smog, vandalism, and six decades of weathering.
Apparently, some attempts at repair actually caused further degrading of the marble surfaces. The website New York Architecture records that the Arch “has been deteriorating over the years as a result of air pollution, neglect and an ill-advised 1964 restoration attempt on the statues of George Washington on the front of the arch.” (underline added)
However, repair and restoration of the Arch and the statues by MacNeil and Calder would await another thirty years, until 2004, as the Landmark entered the 21st Century.
Read more of this Restoration at:
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Hermon A. MacNeil’s statue of
General George Washington
(on the reverse of this historic Arch)
stands above this
“Victory 
Celebration.”
Spontaneous crowds are celebrating the
ELECTION of 46th PRESIDENT of the United States,
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr.
(The “Everyday JOE” candidate.)
& Kamala Harris
the first Woman Vice President
daughter of an Asian Indian Mother and a Jamacian Father,
Joyous New Yorkers flocked to the historic Washington Arch to dance and shout as Joe Biden was declared the next President-elect after four days of ballot counting.
It’s An American National Block Party
Behind the scenes MacNeil’s likeness of General Washington guarded the rear flanks of the rally
MacNeil’s statue portrays General George Washington in the uniform of the Continental Army of 1775. Also, on the back of the Arch is Alexander Sterling Calder’s accompanying statue of President Washington as 1st President and the first civilian Commander-in-Chief.
Celebrating Americans seem relieved that new leadership will deal with the following stresses of 2020:
- Political Vitriol
- COVID-19 PANDEMIC
- Black Lives Matter demonstrations.
- Weaponized Decision Folly
In June 2020 Vandals tossed
red paint
this MacNeil work
Both statues of George Washington suffered “red paint” vandalism during earlier demonstrations on June 29, 2020.
[ CLICK HERE for that Story ]
Photo Credit: NY Post – Stephan Jeremiah
The accompanying “George Washington as President” statue by Alexander Sterling Calder was also damaged. They have since been cleaned. However, such vandalism takes a toll on these century old marble art monuments. 
The Vandalism post:
Related posts:
- Presidents Day 2020 ~~ MacNeil Month ~~ Wm. McKinley ~~ Abe Lincoln ~~ Geo. Washington ~~ “THEY ARE ALL THERE” — H.A MacNeil’s Sculptures of 3 Presidents ~~ (10) “They are still there” celebrates several re-visits and discoveries of…
- Happy Birthday Mr. Washington! ~ PART ONE ~ MacNeil Month #5 ~ The President Who would NOT be King. (9) February 22nd marks the 279th Birthday of George Washington. February…
- Happy (actual) Birthday, Mr. Washington! ~~~ ~~~ Visit New York City for MacNeil Month ~~~ (#8) (9) George Washington February 22, 1732 Pictured below is Hermon A. …
- New York – Washington Square – Arch – (8) MacNeil’s “Washington at War” graces one side of the Arch…
- Washington Square – NYC – Fiction and Reality (8) Hermon A. MacNeil’s sculpture of George Washington on the Arch…
- Memorial Day Photo ~MacNeil’s “General George Washington” with flags (7)
More Tensions on The Battery at the MacNeil Statue
Posted by: | CommentsA man was arrested in Charleston, SC, at The Confederate Defenders statue today as a woman was video recording. “For the past couple Sundays, supporters of Black Lives Matter and supporters of the Confederacy, a group called Flags Across America, have stood at the Battery near the Confederate Defenders statue to protest.”
ABC News 4 & WCIV report Charleston police stating that “a man was arrested after he allegedly “chest-bumped” a woman near the Confederate Defenders statue.
Witnesses tell ABC News 4 that a man shoved a Black Lives Matter protester. Charleston Police officials said they don’t have information on which group he was supporting.
Seven weeks ago on May 30th, the base of this statue was marked with red spray paint. Incidents have continued since then.
Since the murders at the AME Mother Emmanuel Church in 2015, The Confederate Defenders have been spray painted at least 3 times.
No one has been was injured in any of these incidents since 2015.
CLICK HERE: FOR VIDEO and further details OF THE ARREST.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OTHER VANDALISM ELSEWHERE on MacNeil works:
In New York City the MacNeil statue of George Washington as General of the Continental Army has also been spray painted. CLICK HERE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Related posts:
Washington Statues “Bleeding” with Red Paint! MacNeil & Calder works defaced.
Posted by: | Comments
Both George Washington statues on the Arch were defaced with red paint in Washington Square. [Credit: Stefan Jeremiah for New York Post]
We were saddened to hear that “red paint” was splattered over statues of George Washington in NYC yesterday.
CLICK HERE for the New York Post story of the defacing. By Kevin Sheehan and Tina Moore June 29, 2020 | 12:26pm | Updated ]
Vandalism on June 29, 2020 left MacNeil’s statue “bleeding” red paint of of the 104 year-old marble monument.
The news arrived this morning from Antonio Bueti, a New York native, MacNeil buff, and Friend of HermonAtkinsMacNeil.com/
Three weeks ago, I posted Photos and the story of BLM Protesters marching through the Arch during demonstrations over the death of George Floyd. CLICK HERE
“We had to work together on those statues, Calder and I,” said Mr. MacNeil, “and we had some hot arguments over them, though we are good friends. Of course, each of us had his own statue to do, but we had to treat them in the same restrained manner, to fit each other and the Arch itself” J. Walker McSpadden, Famous Sculptors of America: Books for Libraries Press, Freeport, NY, 1924, reprint 1968
