WELCOME to the “Hermon A. MacNeil” — Virtual Gallery & Museum !
~ This Gallery celebrates Hermon Atkins MacNeil, of the Beaux Arts School American classic sculptor of Native images and American history. ~ World’s Fairs, statues, monuments, coins, and more… ~ Hot-links ( lower right) lead to works by Hermon A. MacNeil. ~ Over 200 of stories & 2,000 photos form this virtual MacNeil Gallery stretching east to west New York to New Mexico ~ Oregon to S. Carolina. ~ 2021 marks the 155th Anniversary of Hermon MacNeil’s birth. ~~Do you WALK or DRIVE by MacNeil sculptures DAILY! ~~ CHECK it OUT!
DO YOU walk by MacNeil Statues and NOT KNOW IT ???
On June 6, 1919, Northfield paid Honors to Moody at the 40th Anniversary Celebration of Founder’s Day in East Northfield, Mass.
The four days of celebration included:
A Reception at the home of Principal C. E. Dickerson, Tuesday evening, marked the close of the commencement exercises and celebration of the 40th anniversary of the funding of Northfield Seminary.
The Reunion of nearly five hundred former students and friends returned to Northfield.
The occasion honored the founder, Dwight L. Moody.
Moody’s youngest granddaughter, Margaret Moody, unveiled the portrait bust by pulling the draping off of her grandfather’s bronze likeness.
Little Margaret is the daughter of Chaplain Paul D. Moody, son of D. L. Moody and Head of Chaplains for the Allied Expeditionary Force (A.E.F).
The bust is the gift of the alumnae and has graced Sage Memorial Chapel for over a century.
Hermon MacNeil of New York sculpted the bust from a pencil drawing he made of Mr. Moody when the evangelist was in the vigor of his powers and from a death mask provided by the school.
MacNeil made the sketches at The Chicago World’s Fair of 1893. Moody organized Sunday worship services held in the stadium built by William Cody for his “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.” NO SUNDAY SHOWS were allowed at the Fair. So, Moody rented it from Cody on Sundays and packed it with fair attenders and local pastors and their congregationschurch
It was presented by Mrs. Helen M. Williams of New York City, President of the board of trustees of the Northfield schools. Another token of the esteem in which Northfield graduates hold their alma mater was the gift of $600 from the class of 1914.
This digital file of the article from the September 1919 issue of the Northfield Alumnae Chronicle is a treasure trove of background information.
The bust was a gift of the Alumnae Association. Many small donations.
Johnson’s presentation speech cites conversations with MacNeil. It is a wonderful piece of Northfield history and affection for Mr. Moody 20 years after his death. .
MacNeil attended one of D. L. Moody’s Meetings in Chicago ( MacNeil was there between 1890-95).
MacNeil made a hasty sketch of Moody at that meeting. He kept his sketch for years.
MacNeil created the bust of Moody and afterward told the alumnae (Mrs. Johnson (?)) the story of making the sketch.
The bust was presented at a service in Sage Chapel.
Lost New England (retrieved 4-17-2021) [https://lostnewengland.com/category/massachusetts/northfield-massachusetts/]
East Northfield, Mass. June 6, (1919)
ROCHESTER DEMOCRAT AND CHRONICLE. Saturday, June 7, 1919
And thereby flame Jo’s natural talent & burning desire
to become a sculptor.
And through his gentle personality and kindness,
MacNeil showedJorespect
and filled some of Jo’searly void of approval
being a FATHER FIGURE unlike Jo’s own Father,
and MacNeil also affirmed Jo’s early exhibit FIGURE of
“David”, the Jewish Boy, fighting an invisible GOLIATH.
And then decades later when
Jo Davidson’s fame and career
had eclipsed even that ofMacNeil
or any of his altier assistants — John Gregory or Henri Crenier —
Jo chose to return to honor his first teacher
by sculpting him in clay
andimmortalizinghim in BRONZE.
AND NOW WE KNOW, THAT IS JUST WHAT
HE DID !
This bust is Just Gorgeous
An amazing piece and
a more amazing discovery —
for me and this website
after being out of view
for over 70 years.
We just Love IT !
[Dan Neil Leininger: webmaster]
JO DAVIDSON’S LETTER OF SYMPATHY
On Nov. 6, 1947. Jo sent letter of sympathy to Cecelia MacNeil, Hermon’s widow expressing his heartbreak at Hermon’s passing
INTERESTING FACTS in this letter:
Jo Davidson made this sculpture in the year 1945.
He shares his heartbreak over the death.
He remembers Hermon’s happiness
He will exhibit the bust for the Art World to see & remember
He wants Cecelia to come the Exhibition and see the bust.
Jo and Flo invited Cecelia to their home for her to visit.
Cecelia was an RN
— an Army Nurse during WW I .
She nursed Carol Brooks until she died
on July 22, 1944.
She nursed Hermon as well four years later until he died
on October 2, 1947.
PERSONAL FACTS:
I am DANIEL NEIL LEININGER. My middle name comes from my mother’s maiden name — “McNeil“.
I was born in 1945 the same year this bust was made.
(June 30, 1945 Daniel Neil Leininger is born in Saint Louis, Missouri)
I am the same age as the bust. (just not as good looking)!
I was 27 months-old when Hermon died. I never saw Hermon MacNeil’s face until this BUST arrived.
Curious QUESTIONs:
SO did JO make this portrait Bust of HERMON in Jan to April 1945, or NOV-DEC, 1945?
Before or after his 2nd Heart attack in San Francisco?
TIMELINE around Jo’s Bust of
Hermon MacNeil
TIMELINE of Events when Bust was made:
Source: Between Sittings … pp. 344-346. (Events from Jo’s narrative. Some public dates filled in)
April 12, 1945 Franklin D. Roosevelt died. Jo got the call at Lahaska that afternoon. Jo had known FDR since 1933 when he sculpted the first bust of him White House. He sculpted two inaugural Medals for FDR.
April 18, 1945Ernie Pyle killed in action. Jo made his bust in 1942
April 22, 1945Jo Davidson and Florence travel (fly) to Los Angeles., Says he is exhausted. Jo is distressed self-dosing on nitroglycerin tablets
April 24, 1945 Jo Davidson has a 2nd heart attack on the opening evening of the United Nations Conference.
April 25, 1945Jo Davidson is in St. Mary”s Hospital in San Francisco under an oxygen tent.
April25,1945 to June 26, 1945 — United Nations Organizational Conference in San Francisco
Aug. 14, 1945 Florence tells Jo of Victory-in-Japan Day news report on radio in while he remains in hospital.
Sept. – Oct. 1945 For the next Two months Jo was recouping at the Ranch of Ralph Stagpole in Cloverdale CA. The Stagpoles took in Jo, his nurse, and Florence and helped him get back to health.
Oct. 1945.Jo and Flossie returned to their home in Lahaska, NY
Nov. 6, 1947. Jo sends letter of sympathy to Cecelia MacNeil, Hermon’s widow expressing his heart break at Hermon’s passing
Oct. 2, 1947 DEATH: Hermon Atkins MacNeil dies at his home in College Point.
Nov. 25, 1947 BUST EXHIBITED ~~ National Institute of Arts and Letters – Retrospective Exhibition of Jo Davidson’s Work. This bust was a part of that Exhibition
1951 Jo Davidson’s health continues to deteriorate
1951 Jo’s friends Andre Gide & Robert Flaherty died … and Sinclair Lewis
Jan. 2, 1952 Jo Davidson dies at his home in Becheron, France.
FYI
I have ordered a plain black wooden pillar stand (30′ X 12″ X 12″). It will offer a fitting display for this wonderful tribute to
Hermon A. MacNeil(1866-1947)
Beaux Arts sculptor of Indians and Monuments
HERMON MacNEIL AS HE APPEARED ABOUT 1945
Hermon Atkins MacNeil ~ About 1945 ~ when Jo Davidson sculpted him. Seated outside of his studio in College Point, Queens, NYC. [ Credit: Kenilworth Historical Society donated by Joel Rosenkranz of Conner – Rosenkranz, LLC. ]
Hermon MacNeilcontinued making Historical Subjects, World’s Fairs, and Monuments as he had for 20 years (1893-1912).
[ Photos and hot-links to MORE MacNeilworks appear at the end of this post …⇓ ]
Jo Davidson after a decade of searching and wandering, to fulfill some inner talent,
he discovered his “Sculptor Within.”
Review: Jo made repeated attempts (1903-7) at studying the “Beaux Arts”style at the Art Students League of New York, learning it “hands-on” in the MacNeil Studio with John Gregory, and Henri Crenier (and all their teasing), under the quiet tutelage of Hermon MacNeil. Then actually traveling to Paris without scholarship or support to enroll in the actual Ecole des Beaux-Arts.
BUT … LEAVING THERE after 3 weeks because he sensed that Beaux Arts was training him to sculpt “Antiquities” WHENhe wanted to “SCULPT LIFE.”
Jo Davidson
In 1909 before coming back to New York City, Jo married Yvonne deKerstrat, a French actress and sister of an artist friend, Louis de Kerstrat. Their son Jacques was born the next year.
The next several years were very productive for the sculptor. His figural works included a bronze statuette of Ida Rubinstein and an eight-foot bronze La Terre.
ONE-MAN SHOWS X 3. In 1911 Jo began presenting one-man shows. The first opened in the New York in April, then a second more successful one at Reinhardt Galleries in Chicago in November. This included twenty portraits and twenty figures. A third show in New York opened in January 1913 with twenty-two figural works and fifteen portraits. With this growing success in both reputation and finances, Jo could now keep two studios — one in New York and another in Paris.
69th Regiment Armory on Lexington Ave. on-street parking New York City
The Armory Show 1913
Also in 1913, Davidson exhibited in the Armory Show, also known as The International Exhibition of Modern Art. This three-city exhibition started in New York City’s 69th Regiment Armory on Lexington Ave. From there it traveled to the Art Institute of Chicago and next to Boston’s Copley Society.
Walt Kuhn, American painter, and a friend of Jo Davidson, was an organizer of the famous Armory Show which was America’s first large-scale introduction to European Modernism in Art. Working with Arthur B. Davies and Walter Pach, Kuhn spent a year, much of it in Europe assembling a collection The exhibition traveled to New York City, Chicago, and Bostonand was seen by approximately 300,000 Americans. Of the 1,600 works included in the show, about one-third were European, and attention became focused on them. The selection was almost a history of European Modernism.[https://www.britannica.com/event/Armory-Show-art-show-New-York-City#ref126367]
“Kuhn and Davies had both studied in Europe and developed a strong appreciation for the groundbreaking developments that were taking place there, particularly in Paris. Both also had ambitious dreams of altering the very fabric of American art and culture. The pair would be particularly instrumental in bringing a display of European art to U.S. shores—the likes of which most Americans had never seen before. With the same sprawling exhibition, they would also provide an opportunity for American artists that they had found so lacking in their own careers.” [ https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-1913-armory-dispelled-belief-good-art-beautiful ]
The show’s sponsor, the Association of American Painters and Sculptors developed in 1911 with the aim of finding suitable exhibition space for young artists. They found ideals and policies of the National Academy of Design too restrictive to innovation. The show introduced the American public accustomed to realistic art to the experimental styles sweeping Paris, namely, Fauvism, Cubism, and Futurism. But most Americans arrived expecting “real art,” namely, the “realistic” representations of the renaissance masters. To these viewers the show was a puzzlement. Observers responded with confusion, shock, or even anger at this “satire” of “real art.”
Jo Davidson and the Armory Show.
The Armory show was labeled many things by American art critics. Frank J. Mather argued that “Post-Impressionism is merely the “harbinger of universal anarchy.”[1] It overwhelmed American isolationism with an artistic invasion of a strange avant gardearmy of artists. So to most Americans it was a puzzlement both in appearance and reporting afterward. They came expecting “real art,” as “realistic” as the renaissance masters. That was Art! But “This?” “What is this?” Observers responded with confusion, shock, anger, and harsh words at this “satire” of “real art.”
The 1913 Armory Show The International Exhibition of Modern Art opened on February 17, 1913 at the 69th Regiment Armory on Lexington Avenue. The Armory Show—as it came to be known—had an immediate and profound influence, introducing the avant-garde to America and forever altering the narrative of Modernism in America. Photograph by Percy Rainford, courtesy of Bettmann/Corbis. SOURCE: https://www.thearmoryshow.com/armory-25/one-fair-one-city ON 2-6-2021
Jo Davidsonwas no stranger to European Modernism. Such experiences of “the unconventional” were part of his strolls of Paris with Sultan by his side. He loved his years on the Left Bank. This Bohemian world of the avant garde enlivened him. It pleased and excited his imagination Such images must have powered his search for that illusive “sculptor within.” His search had gone on for over a decade.
Davidson’s Impact: Jo Davidson appreciated this work, but was hardly a Modernist in his own creativity. Yet he seemed to affect the Armory show in at least two ways:
Walt Kuhn appreciated Jo Davidson works. He placed them cleverly throughout the display. As such, they became benchmarks of understandable art next to some of the more unusual Modernist pieces.“Theartists who created them might know what they intended, but most of them weren’t there and many who were [there] were too shy or found talking too difficult.” 2 Each of Jo’s portrait busts and figures became an oasis of “real” sculpture in the confusing landscape of Modern Art. Confused and puzzled viewers could wander the foreign art territory of the Armory Show and find occasional respite at a “Davidson” work of art.
In addition, Jo Davidson himself became an occasional ‘Docent’ at the Armory Show. Lois Kuhn in her children’s biography of Davidson captures an anecdotal explanation that conveys the essence of Jo to her audience: “Jo often visited the armory show himself and could easily explain to others not only his own work, but that of those artists unable to speak for themselves. What a man with words Jo was! Lois Kuhn offers this humorous ‘possible’ vignette to her young readers:
“Its outrageous.” a man protested, looking hard at one of the paintings. “Whoever heard of ‘pink’ grass?“
Jo chuckled. “But you knew it was grass, didn’t you, sir? It never once occurred to you that it wasn’t anything else, now did it?”
The man frowned. “Well I don’t care. I don’t like the darn thing anyway!”
“Nobody said you had to like it, sir, but if you dislike it, why not dislike it with a reason?” Jo thought for a moment, then asked, “Have you ever noticed what colors the shadows on the snow are?”
The viewer was silent. He was trying hard to remember. Jo knew the man had probably never before bothered to think about such an ordinary thing, although he must have seen it hundreds of times. “No I don’t think I have,” the man admitted, “Do you know?”
“They’re purple! The artist looks and sees them so. But so can you! Or anyone else. Just notice next time it snows. Then try to think how it would be if the artist painted snow, making the shadows green. You’d still know they were shadows, wouldn’t you?”
“Okay, you win!” the man sighed. I see your point and you are right!” He smiled, began to turn away, but suddenly turned back and winked at Jo. “You know,” he said strongly, “if more artists could explain things as you do, maybe plain people like me wouldn’t have so darn much trouble trying to find out what they’re up to!”
Jo grinned back. He was happy knowing just one more person would be able to look at a piece of art and try really to understand it.” 2
infrared landscapes by richard mosse at the 2013 Armory Show. CREDIT: ‘platon, north kivu, eastern congo’, 2012all images courtesy jack shainman gallery.
Note: PINK GRASS at the 2013 Armory Show ~~~ Irish photographer Richard Mosse is celebrated for his striking imagery of eastern congo, and presents ‘infrared landscapes’ at the Armory Show in New York 100 years later from the 7-10 March, 2013. “The photographs are full and rich – the arresting deep reds and crimson hues, candy floss trees and savanna grasses aflame with color. all these surreal elements created through a combination of an obsolete wooden field camera and a rare technique produced by kodak aerochrome, a product developed for military use in the detection of aerial bombing targets. in the late 1960s, the medium was appropriated in artwork for rock musicians like the grateful dead or jimi hendrix, setting the tone for the sublime psychedelic aesthetic of the time.”
Jo Davidson revels in“PORTRAIT BUST-ing”
By the end of 1913 Davidson had done more than thirty portrait busts. He had a reputation for being “fast” and “good” at that craft. The Davidson’s returned to France, with a second son, Jean, and found a house in Céret, which is near the border with Spain about 20 miles from the Mediterranean Sea. His wife’s brother Louis de Kerstrat had purchased a small house there. More importantly, growing reputation of Céret was as“the refuge of Picasso, Matisse, Soutine and Chagall” It would eventually be known as “the Mecca of the Cubists.” Moving there he met Picasso and Aristide Maillol. Soon Jo was off to London which presented a wealth of opportunities for making portraits of notables.
LORD NORTHCLIFFE 1913 by Jo Davidson. “Between …” p.54b.
“Portrait became an obsession. Meeting and knowing people meant becoming acquainted with their thinking.” Jo Davidson
From a studio in Thackery House he roved cafes, bars, watering holes seeing and being seen by journalists, authors, and celebrities. His 1914 exhibition at Leicester Galleries included busts of newspaper mogul Lord Northcliffe, Frank and Nell Harris, and George Bernard Shaw.
THE TASTE OF WAR
When WWI broke out, Davidson wanted a place in the effort and through Lord Northcliffe was appointed an artist-correspondent to accompany veteran correspondent George Lynch. The first went to Ostend, Belgium on the English Channel finding a “dead city.” They went on east to Ghent climbing 194 steps in a church tower observing the battle of Grenberegen nearly 15 miles distant. He didn’t enjoy it!
Jo Davidison’s LIBERTY BONDS poster- THE GUT PUNCH.
He later tried to make sketches but without enthusiasm. At an ambulance he met doctors and nurses who spoke no French and he was called over to translate. He received word that their hotel in Ostend had been bombed and destroyed the day they left.
The Germans were advancing and the British were retreating. He saw a priest comforting a soldier with open severe facial wounds. On the road back to Ostend he passed carts filled with old women, children and babies. People carrying pots and pans, a goat, a mattress, a chair, something they could not part with. “War” was no longer just a word in the history books.
Heartsick, Jo returned to London wanting to do something in clay to express what he saw in France. Samuel Taylor Coleridge wrote three lines:
FRANCE AROUSED 1914 by Jo Davidson. [Between… p 86a.]
“When France in wrath her giant – limbs upreared,
And with that oath, which smote air, earth, and sea,
Stamped her strong foot and said she would be free.”
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
The result for Jo was“France Aroused.”
“It was a figure of Bellona,
the goddess of War,
with her feet squarely planted on the on the ground,
her arms upraised, fists clenched,
and her head thrown back —
a cry of rage and protest.” [
Between …, p.11.]
RETURNING TO Céret — His Home was converted to a HOSPITAL
On May 26, 1915, Yvonne offered their home in Céret as an auxiliary hospital, Bénévole No. 62 with 40 beds, two nurses and Yvonne in charge. She was up at five A.M. and when all retired would pour over the books in the wee hours. Their five-year-old son, Jacques, dressed in the uniform of a Chasseur Alpin presided at the head of the evening dinner table in a black baret the Apline hunters.
In 1916 Davidson returned to New York exhibiting fifty-five sculptures and war drawings at Reinhardt Galleries and in June modeled President Wilson. He began to realize the historical value of his collection of works. When the United States entered the War in 1917 Davidson decided to make a “plastic history” by modeling portraits of Allied civil and militrary chiefs. So we left for France with funding from Gertrude Whitney and letters of reference from previous subjects. The result — The Peace Conference Series — fourteen portraits of including General John J. Pershing (1918), Marshal Ferdinand Foch (1918), who signed his portrait beginning a tradition that Jo continued, Lord Arthur Balfour (1919), George Clemenceau (1920).
1923 – Gertrude Stein and Jo had met in 1909. He assessed that a head of her was not enough. He decided to do a seated figure — “a sort of a modern Buddha.” [Between …, 174-7.]
“Gertrude was a very rich personality. Her wit and her laughter were contagfious. She loved good food and served it. While I was doing her portrait, She would come around my studio with a manuscript and read it aloud. The extraordinary part of it was that, as she read, I never felt any sense of mystification. ‘A rose is a rose is a rose,’ she took on a different meaning with each inflection. When she read aloud got the humor of it. We both laughed, and her laughter was something to hear. There was an eternal quality about her — she somehow symbolized wisdom.”
John D. Rockefeller 1924
The only person Jo Davidson ever wrote to requesting to do a portrait bust was John D. Rockefeller. One month later he received a Letter from his son, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. containing several questions.
Jo Davidson and John D. Rockefeller modeling his portrait
Several days later John D, Jr. visited the studio with more questions and discussed all details of the venture. A truck arrived carrying all of Davidson’s studio equipment to the Rockefeller Estate in Tarrytown, north of the city.
On their meeting Rockefeller told Jo, “Davis … Davison … Davidson.” The first was his secretary’s name, the second his own middle name, and finally Jo’s last name. Rockefeller voiced the ironic trilogy and his usual “A-ll good.” After meeting his new subject, Davidson, Jo entered into the daily routine and was invited to stay as a house guest rather that commute by train daily. Jo’s descriptions of his time with the family patriarch and his storytelling are as illuminating as his sculpting.
When Jo finished, Rockefeller invited all the house staff to come in and see his fresh likeness. “Come __ in,” he said. “Take__ your__ time. Have a good look at it__ yes? A-ll good. Thank You.”
The son, John D. Jr., liked the finished bust so much that he commissioned Jo to execute it in marble, and also to make a colossal head in stone to be put in the Standard Oil Building.
1927 Pioneer Woman ~ Ponca City, OK ~ E.W. Marland
A reunion for Hermon and Jo and John Gregory.
CONFIDENT – The winning PIONEER WOMAN by Bryant Baker
TRUSTING (1927) by Jo Davidson
CHALLENGING. 1927. Hermon MacNeil
SELF RELIANT by A. Stirling Calder
In 1927 wealthy oilman E. W. Marland of Ponca City, Oklahoma invited a dozen American sculptors to compete for a commission to create a statue to honor the Pioneer Woman. Each artist was to submit a two-foot bronze model for the monument, which was to express, in Marland’s words, “the spirit of the pioneer woman—a tribute to all women of the sunbonnet everywhere.”
PROTECTIVE by John Gregory
Marland’s selection of that dozen sculptors became something of a reunion for Jo Davidson[1] and Hermon MacNeil and John Gregory (an earlier assistant with Davidson in MacNeil’s studio). Others invited were invited included James Earle Fraser, Bryant Baker, and A. Stirling Calder. Each of the dozen were paid $10,000 to produce a bronze two-foot statue model with the winner to be determined by public vote.
The models were sent on a six-month tour of several U.S. cities, from New York and Boston to Minneapolis and Fort Worth and Chicago. Tens of thousands of ballots were cast, and Baker’s model “Confident” won by a margin of nearly two to one. Neither MacNeil or his two previous students won the commission.
Bryant Baker’s entry won the final comission by a wide margin of ballots. Each artist submitted a two-foot bronze model for the monument, which was to express, in Marland’s words, “the spirit of the pioneer woman—a tribute to all women of the sunbonnet everywhere.”
JO DAVIDSON STRIKES OIL
Jo Davidson charmed E. W. Marland so that he built a permanent studio for the sculptor in Ponca City. Jo declined moving there permanently, but did spent weeks there completing statues of E. W., his daughter, Lyde standing holding a large garden bonnet; and son, George, in boots and riding breeches. He also carved a seated figure of E.W. Marland in marble which remains outside the museum a century later.
After completing the sculptures, E. W. Marland took Jo on a trip to California and back to New York in his private railroad car the “Ponca City.” Jo wrote letters to Yvonne during the two-week excursion. Jo met E. W.’s friends, and E.W. met Jo’s friends. “The Trip, one of the richest experiences of my life, eventually was over, and I set out for Europe where political developments were moving at a rapid pace.” [Between …, pp. 210-220.]
Hermon Atkins MacNeil
“Monument Man”
Photos of his works from 1912 to 1929
Hot Links to MacNeil Sculptures follow …
“Into the Unknown” by H. A. MacNeil ( white marble, 1912) became the ‘seal’ image for the National Sculpture Society.
MacNeil’s “Lincoln Lawyer” At the Rushville, Illinois Public Library.
“Dwight L. Moody” bust by Hermon A. MacNeil. Northfield Mount Hermon School in Massachusetts
Sherlock finds Lincoln??
The tradition of touching Lincoln’s nose for “good luck” has passed on to another generation of Illini students since the restoration.
Ezra Cornell statue at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY was dedicated in 1918 after WWI.
“Dwight L. Moody” 1920 – A bust by Hermon Atkins MacNeil now graces the campus of Northfield Mount Hermon academy in Massachusetts. The school is a merger of the two separate academies (one for girls and one for boys) that Moody founded in 1879 and 1881
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. This photo was salvaged from a NYC flea market by John Gomez and used with his permission Credit: John Gomez, NYC.
Behind the scenes MacNeil’s likeness of General Washington guarded the rear flanks of the rally
“George Washington as Commander-in Chief” ~ A recent photo of this MacNeil work that has graced the Washington Arch in Greenwich Village for the last 96 years.
Jim Haas, author and College Point native, sent this Philadelphia shot of Hermon MacNeil’s Soldiers and Sailors Monument on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. That is a rare shot of Jim himself, taken by Lynne, his director of public relations. : ) Jim is a Friend of HermonAtkinsMacNeil.com and a generous researcher for the website.
Philadelphia – Hermon MacNeil – Soldiers And Sailors Monument Sailors side – Being photographed by Dan Leininger, webmaster).
A studio B&W photo of MacNeil’s “WWI Monument” placed at Flushing, NY. This photo was found by John Gomez in a file of papers at a Manhattan flea market on June 9, 2012, nearly 87 years after the statue was made.
A visit to Illinois last week included a stop at the Abe Lincoln bust at Spurlock Museum at U of I. The sculpture will no longer be viewable in-the-round after being returned to its permanent home in the sparklingly-restored Lincoln Hall on campus.
Hearmon A. MacNeil’s “Lincoln Lawyer” at the University of Illinois
Hermon MacNeil include this sculpture of the ‘original telegraph’ into his tribute to Erza Cornell in 1917.
July 21, 2011. The restored bust on display at the Spurlock Museum. MacNeil’s Lincoln bust is beautifully restored on public display in the Spurlock Museum
MacNeil’s 1915 “Lincoln” in Lincoln Hall
MacNeil’s ‘Adventurous Bowman’ atop the “Column of Progress.” None the structures and sculptures seen here remained after the PPIE colsed in 1915.
“Column of Progress” with MacNeil’s “Adventurous Bowman” as the finial figure on top.
MacNeil’s 12′ 8″ Washington (left ) on the Arch (illuminated at sunset)
General George Washington with Flags (U.S. and POW/MIA) ~ Washington Arch Greenwich, NYC (Photo courtesy of: Gibson Shell – 2011)
General George Washington ~ gloves in-hand and hand-on-sword
MacNeil's "Washington as Commander" with 'Valor' in profile to the right
This older photo shows the Arch when traffic was still allowed in the Square.
World War I Memorial – Flushing, New York by H. A. MacNeil
The Soldiers side of the monument
The Soldiers side of the Monument.
ROGER WILLIAMS bust by MacNeil at “Hall of Fame” in Bronx Comm. College ~ Photo Credit: Librado Romero/The New York Times ( http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2009/12/05/nyregion/05metjournal2_ready.html )
The companion figure to “Intellectual Development”
Further detail to Pat’s companion figure
The sculptor’s signature and date on “Pat”
“Pat” or “Intellectual Development” holds a septer bearing the initial “N,” as in Northwestern, with the owl poised for flight in front of Patten Gym.
“Physical Development” or “Jim,” for short, achieves victory over his opponent in front of Patten Gym at Northwestern University.
Ezra Cornell now interacts with Students through “Dear Uncle Ezra” website.
Hermon Macneil’s ‘green likeness’ of Ezra Cornel is what most students visulaze.
MacNeil’s Jolliete image of 1926.
MacNeil’s depiction of Marquette has the priest with an inviting open right hand and raising a cross above his heart.
Our trip was a satisfying success as our daughter took our pictures at hefoot of the Monument.
Chicagoans approaching the Monument along Marshall and 24th Avenue Boulevards are greeted by the Jesuit’s open hand.
MacNeil’s bronze sculpture of Marquette with an Ilinois Indian on his right hand.
Face of Jolliet from MacNeil’s 1926 Statue grouping of Marquette
Visit these links for further information on these ststues and monuments:
F. J. Mather argued that “Post-Impressionism is merely the harbinger of universal anarchy.” [1913, March 6, “Newest Tendencies in Art,” Independent 74, pp.504-512.] Cited in, On The Margins Of Art Worlds, By Larry Gross p. ?
Here’s a 2010 Update on this Story: 2010 Ponca City duplicates 12 models:https://oklahoman.com/article/3455825/ponca-city-welcomes-back-one-dozen-pioneer-women
In Between Sittings, his autobiography, Jo sculpts his early home life in shapes of restlessness,rovering, and hunger.
“I was born on New York’s lower East Side and the memories of early youth are vague and shadowy. I remember long, dark halls, crowded tenements, strange sour smells, drab unpainted walls and moving — we were always moving. … we were exceedingly poor and often didn’t have enough to eat.” * Between Sittings, p. 3.
Samantha Baskind tells Jo’s story this way: Davidson was born in the ghetto of New York’s Lower East Side to immigrant parents who had fled the Russian pogroms. Encyclopaedia Judaica.
Jo “was the youngestof five children in a household of greatly limited means.” “He had a step-brother, George, and three sisters; Nancy, Rachel, and Rose.”2
Jo’s parents had real fears and emotional scars from the traumas of those anti-Jewish persecutions in Russia. After his parents emigrated to the U.S., Jo was born in New York City on March 30, 1883. Jo inherited a restless wanderer’s spirit as a an offspring of terrorized generations “who had fled the Russian pogroms” MORE.
Jo’s father, Jacob, was Jewish and a man “who lived completely within himself.” His father was “orthodox, self-absorbed, and more intent on religion than on his family.”2 He believed in miracles and fanatically hoped to hold the winning ticket in some lottery. His father’s friends teased Jacob asking if he would rather have a SON or win a MILLION dollar lottery. So after Jo was born, he was nicknamed by friends and family,“The Million.”
“Father had beautiful eyes, a long white beard, and the face of a prophet. I can still see him moving about the house almost like a spirit. He was always praying and a sign of affection from him was a rarely given luxury.” * Between Sittings, p. 3. and Joel Rosenkranz, Rediscoveries…, p. 11.
Jo went with his Father, Jacob, to synagogue on Saturdays, but kept out of his way for fear of offending him. When he asked “where did Cain get his wife?”his Father father smacked him down by stating that “with God everything is possible.”
Jacob Davidson, definitely had plans and ambitions for his son. The MILLION became the sarcastic “BRIS” label of blessing for Jacob’s only son. That moniker became a life-long label in Jo’s Life. Seven decades later, Jo entitled Chapter 1 of his autobiography, “THE MILLION!” Even after his death, Lois Harris Kuhn in her biography,The World of Jo Davidson, offered her young Jewish readers the following explanation:
“No one was ever to know for certain what it was that Jacob Davidson thought that having a son meant. Whatever it was, it was obvious — almost right away — that Jo was unlike anyone his father had expected. In Fact, Jo was like no one else. He asked far to many questions. He made pictures of everything he saw. He was so filled with life and laughter that everyone around him responded to it. Everybody — everything — small or large — interested Jo.! It was a good thing for a boy that his mother, Haya, understood him completely. ” [ Kuhn, The World of Jo Davidson, Farrar, Straus and Cudahy, Jewish Publication Society, New York, 1958. p. 4.]
Jo’s personality was much like his mother, Haya, (nee: Getzoff) “was full of an unquenchable fire that brought life to everything around her… .”
“She was tiny, energetic, practical, the one on whom the whole family leaned. The Davidson’s were exceedingly poor and often didn’t get enough to eat. She would distract the family from their hunger with her wonderful story telling of her past life in Russia, her grandfather who adored her and raised her, and their father’s family filled with scholars and rabbis.” Between Sittings, p. 3,
She was a wonderful cook, could stretch a half-pound of meat into a dozen mouths. Food was very scarce, but restlessness flourished.
“It is curious how little I remember of my school days. I was always in a dream, vague and lazy. I understand now — being underfed, I wanted to sleep all the time.
Yet for all their poverty, Jo recalls the touch of “a warm glow which came from my mother (Haya) and sisters (Nancy, Rachel, and Rose) who surrounded me with love and affection.”
Between Sittings, p. 3, 6. And Joel Rosenkranz, Rediscovderies
A Train Wreck of JOBS
The needs of the family forced Jo to leave school in his teens. What followed were a series of itinerant, dead-end tasks. He first got a job as an apprentice to a house-painter and paperhanger. He worked 12 hour a day, preparing pots and paints in the mornings and washing up and cleaning brushes after returning from jobs. “I don’t remember how I lost that job, but I did,”
What followed was a succession of endeavors: messenger boy at Western Union, office boy at a weekly, and errand boy at a bookstore. Each job ran off the tracks, as he worked too fast for fellow piece-workers, or then slowed down, and got fired by the boss.
When he got board he would sit and sketch, friends, cats, anything in sight. When he sketched other messenger boys, they told him “Jo, you are wasting your time, you ought to get a job at a newspaper.” In between jobs, he hung around art galleries, or visited the afternoon drawing class at the Educational Alliance. Eventually the idea of becoming an artist appealed to him.
Talent Leads the Way
His sister, Rachie, was teaching public school. She showed some of Jo’s sketches to an interested friend who obtained a year’s tuition for Jo at the Art Students League. He enrolled in evening classes becoming the youngest member of the live class drawing from nude living models. There he also met a friend, Waterbury, who taught pyrography — burning in sketches on leather with a pyrographic needle. He mastered the technique and could sell piece work for good pay.
He continued evening drawing classes at the Art Students League. On weekends he would go to a country sketch club and on Sundays he would paint on Richmond Hill on Staten Island. He said his paintings were timid and pale. One in a discussion group he was asked if he could shut his eyes and mentally see a desired color, red, blue, yellow. Jo recalls, ” I tried and tried but all my concentration produced nothing and it was then that I decided I was not a painter.”Between Sittings, p. 8-10.
For some time, Jo’s family thought he should become a doctor. So he was sent to New Haven moved in with his sister, Nancy, and her husband, David, a graduate of Yale Medical School. In between cramming for Regents’ exam, Jo befriended Randall the college photographer. He loaned Jo a photograph of Dr. Arthur Hadley, of Yale University. Jo began using his skills to make a burnt wood portrait of the new president. When Jo finished, Randall displayed it in his storefront window. The next morning Jo returned to the store to find a crowd of people looking in the window at his portrait. It was marked “sold.” Jo got a check for $25.
The buyer, Mr. Pardee, requested that Jo visit him in his office. Seeing the sketchbook in Jo’s pocket, Pardee asked to examine it, then requested permission to show two drawing to the head of the art school. On seeing the sketches, Professor Neimeyer invited him to come and work in the Art School — tuition free — saying, “We are glad to have young men of talent.” So Jo began drawing a live model with other Art School students. Eventually he sketched the model from so many angles that he tired and lost interest. Taking a break, he roved through the building. He found a basement room full of plaster casts and modeling stands, and he walked in.
Jo finds CLAY and “touches the rest of his life … ”
“I found the clay bin, put my hand in it, and touched the rest of my life. The cool wet stuff gave me a thrill that I had never before experienced.”
He began building clay on a stand, copying a mask of Saint Francis nearby. He lost track of time, then was startled when he realized the modeling instructor, Mr. Boardman, was standing behind him. The instructor asked how long Jo had studied modeling. Jo said this was the first time he had touched clay.
“He did not seem to believe me, which gave me the feeling it was not too bad. We talked for a long time and the result was that I decided to chuck medicine and take up sculpture.” Jo asked who taught sculpture and was given the name of Hermon A. MacNeil. Between Sittings, p. 8-10.
Hermon MacNeil ~ enters Jo’s life …
JO finds Hermon MacNeil and his College Point Studio.
“By 1903, with his flirtation with a medical career ended, Jo was back in New York working as an assistant in sculptor Hermon Atkins MacNeil’s studio.” RosenKranz, p. 11.
Jo FUNNY STORY concludes: “Henri Crenier took a special delight in teasing me. I liked him and took it good-naturedly. But one day I lost my temper and we came to blows. I knocked him down and relieved my feelings by giving him a healthy pummeling. I was so busy that I did not hear MacNeil come into the studio. Suddenly I heard him say: “Jo, when you get through, will you mix me a little plaster.”
Hermon MacNeil outside his Studio about 1945. [Courtesy of Kenilworth Historical Society & Joel Rosenkranz. Photo by: Violet Wyld
Jo Davidson (about 1922)
NOTE THIS WELL:
HERMON’S INTERVENTION: MacNeil did notscold. He did not raise his voice. He did not even tell Jo to stop, for he probably saw the teasing and taunting that the young 18-year-old had taken from the other Assistants, Henri and John. In essence he said,
“When you feel you are sufficiently through pummeling Henri Crenier, (my master assistant), would you mix me a little plaster.” Jo must have found Hermon to be quiet a contrast to his Father whose“signs of affection were rarely given luxuries” Fifty years later Jo tells the above story in his biography, then concludes with: “The summer passed quickly. Those were rich and full days. I was sure of my vocation. I was going to be a sculptor.”l
“Rich and full, the “sculptor to be” went on searching the world for another decade to develop his own style and skills as a sculptor. Then in the next 40 years, Jo Davidson shaped portrait busts of over a hundred world famous people. BUT the kindness of Hermon MacNeil seemed to be a pleasant memory.
MORE “HERMON & JO” STORIES TO COME … on Feb 8th
#2 The Wanderer & The Monument Maker
~~~~
NOTES:
Jo Davidson, Between Sittings: an informal autobiography of Jo Davidson. Dial Press: New York, 1951. PP. 3.
Connor, Janis and Joel Rosenkranz, photographs by David Finn, Rediscoveries in American Sculpture: Studio Works, 1893 – 1939, University of Texas Press, Austin TX 1989.
SOURCES:
Jo Davidson, Between Sittings: an informal autobiography of Jo Davidson. Dial Press: New York, 1951. PP. 3-16.
TIME, “Political Notes: Glamor Pusses.” VOL. XLVIII, No. 11, September 9, 1946. pp
Connor, Janis and Joel Rosenkranz, photographs by David Finn, Rediscoveries in American Sculpture: Studio Works, 1893 – 1939, University of Texas Press, Austin TX 1989.
Jo Davidson, (1883-1952). Jewish Virtual Library: a project of AICE. Source: https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jo-davidson. recovered on Jan 11, 2021.
Two bas relief panels by Hermon A. MacNeil have been discovered. PAN on the left – MINERVA on the right.
They have remained virtually hidden for over 100 years.
Their original installation and images are verified, but their continued deposition as of 2021 remains uncertain.
The above article from 1916 accompanied the the photos of Pan and Minerva in The International Studio, Vol 59, p LVIII.
Hermon A. MacNeil sculpted these bas reliefs over a century ago. Documentation of Pan and Minerva has appeared in recent searches by the webmaster.
Information discovered in recent weeks include:
A Pair of Bas-reliefs of PAN and MINERVA
Material: 2 terra cotta reliefs
Dimensions: 2 1/2 feet by 4 feet
Mr. Hill Tolerton, Owner
William C. Hays, Architect
Location: 540 Sutter St., San Francisco
Building originally designed as an Art establishment
Made in Italian Renaissance style with an upper mezzanine level
Adjoining Courtyard patterned after that of the Italian Building in the late Pan-Pacific Exposition of 1915
The 2 reliefs no longer appear on the face of the building as was the stated design. [SEE Google street PHOTO included below of 540 Sutter Street today]
The above images are the only recordof the MacNeil work presently found. Other evidence may be uncovered in subsequent searches.
Mr. Tolerton wanted the facade of his new Art Gallery on Sutter Street in San Francisco ornamented by two “sculptured placques”. He commissioned MacNeil, a sculptor of the Pan Pacific Exposition of 1915, to make these reliefs of Pan and Minerva to grace his new Art building.
One of Pan — the god of the wild, shepherds and flocks, nature of mountain wilds, rustic music and impromptus, and companion of the nymphs. He has the hindquarters, legs, and horns of a goat, in the same manner as a faun or satyr.
The other of Minerva— the goddess of wisdom, war, art, schools, and commerce. She was the Etruscan counterpart to Greek Athena.
THESE TWO ICONS MARKED TOLERTON’S NEW BUILDING AS AN ART CENTER. [ They do not appear in the street photo captured below from 2020 ]
No trace of the MacNeil bas relief panels of Pan and Minerva at 540 Sutter Street, San Francisco in this 2020 street photo via Google maps. Perhaps they were originally in the space high above the doorway and window a century ago in what now appears as stucco finish. SO, … PAN & MINERVA still remain hidden in the 21st century — if they still exist at all!
SOURCES:
“Two Bas Reliefs by Hermon A. MacNeil”, The International Studio, Ed: Charles Holmes, et. al. Vol.59, p. lviii. from Google Books on 1/3/2021 at https://books.google.com/books?id=q09aAAAAYAAJ&pg=PR58&dq=Pan+Minerva+san+francisco+Mr.+Hill+Tolerton+1916&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiWheuZtYPuAhVWZc0KHWyZDScQ6AEwAHoECAMQAg#v=onepage&q=Pan%20Minerva%20san%20francisco%20Mr.%20Hill%20Tolerton%201916&f=false
“A New San Francisco Gallery”, American Art News. Vol. XIV, No. 33, New York, May 20, 1916. p. 1.
This MacNeil Medallion is a 3" bronze medal with nickel plating minted in 2016 to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the birth of Hermon Atkins MacNeil and the 100th Centenary year of the first minting of the Standing Liberty Quarter dollar. The face duplicates the obverse of MacNeil's original sculpture of Miss Liberty from 1916. The "M" beneath the 13th star is the only form of signature allowed for the sculptor.
<== NOW AVAILABLE ON EBAY the Hermon A. MacNeil Medallion
Here is ONE place to go to see sculpture of Hermon A. MacNeil & his students. Located in cities from east to west coast, found indoors and out, public and private, these creations point us toward the history and values that root Americans.
Daniel Neil Leininger ~ HAMacNeil@gmail.com
Hosting & Tech Support: Leiturgia Communications, Inc. WATCH US GROW
WE DESIRE YOUR DIGITAL PHOTOS – Suggestions
1. Take digital photos of the work from all angles, including setting.
2. Take close up photos of details that you like
3. Look for MacNeil’s signature. Photograph it too! See examples above.
4. Please, include a photo of you & others beside the work.
5. Tell your story of adventure. It adds personal interest.
6. Send photos to ~ Webmaster at: HAMacNeil@gmail.com