Robert Ingersoll Aitken
Robert Ingersoll Aitken | |
|---|---|
 Aitken with one of his sculptures,c. 1920 | |
| Born | May 8, 1878 |
| Died | January 3, 1949(aged 70) New York, New York |
| Known for | Sculpture |
Robert Ingersoll Aitken(May 8, 1878 – January 3, 1949) was an Americansculptor.Perhaps his most famous work is the WestPedimentof theUnited States Supreme Court Building.
Life and career[edit]
Born to Charles H. Aitken and Katherine A. Higgens[1]inSan Francisco,California,Aitken studied there at theMark Hopkins Institute of Art[also called the California School of Design – now the San Francisco Art Institute] withDouglas Tilden.From 1901 until 1904 he was an instructor at the Institute.
During this period, Aitken in 1900 designed San Francisco's original municipal flag; the design was in use from 1900 until sometime in the early 1920s.[2]
In 1903, he sculpted the Victory figure for the top of theDewey Monument,which still stands in San Francisco's Union Square.
In 1904, Aitken carved a 15-foot (4.6 m) statue of a female figure, representing theRepublicfor theWilliam McKinley Memorial,which still stands in theSan FranciscoPanhandle Park.[3]
In 1904, Aitken moved toPariswhere he continued his studies. He returned toNew York Cityafter his sojourn in Paris and was employed as an instructor at theArt Students League.Eleanor Mary Mellonwas among his pupils.[4]
His works include theSciencefountain andGreat Riversstatues at theMissouri State Capitol,theIron Mikestatue atParris Island, South Carolina,several military sculptures atWest Pointand theTemple of Music,and sculptural works for theLiberty MemorialinKansas City, Missouri.Aitken also produced theFountain of Earthfor San Francisco'sPanama Pacific Exposition.
Perhaps his most famous work is the WestPedimentof theUnited States Supreme Court building,which bears the inscription "Equal Justice Under Law".[5]The sculpture, above the entrance to theSupreme Court Building,is of nine figures—the goddess of Liberty surrounded by figures representing Order, Authority, Council, and Research. These allegorical figures were in fact sculptures of real people who had a role in the creation of the building. Aitken himself is depicted in the pediment, seated to the proper left ofLibertywithChief JusticeCharles Evans Hughes.Many of his works were carved by thePiccirilli Brothers,including the pieces for theNational Archives Building.
Aitken created a stir when he criticized the display and placement of theVenus de Milo.[6]His work was also part of thesculpture eventin theart competitionat the1928 Summer Olympics.[7]
Medallic and coin design[edit]
Aitken also enjoyed success as a designer of coins and medals. He sculptedthe $50 gold commemorative(round and octagonal) for the Panama-Pacific Exposition of 1915, as well as the official medal of the event. He also created theMissouri Centennial half dollarof 1921, following it a decade and a half later with theCalifornia Pacific International Exposition half dollarof 1935–1936. In the medallic arena, Aitken sculpted theAmerican Numismatic Society's1921 medal commemorating Marshal Foch's visit to the United States; the 15th issue of theSociety of MedalistsOmnia Vincit Amor,1937; the Medal of the National Academy of Design; and the Medal of the National Sculpture Society.
See also[edit]
- George Rogers Clark(sculpture, 1921)
- Samuel Gompers Memorial
- Lumbermen Monument
- William A. Starke Memorial
References[edit]
- ^Winquist, Kelly (2000).Aitken, Robert Ingersoll.Oxford University Press.doi:10.1093/anb/9780198606697.article.1701155.ISBN978-0-19-860669-7.RetrievedNovember 13,2022.
{{cite book}}:|website=ignored (help) - ^John Lumea,"The Original San Francisco Flag Was Better and Cooler. Let's Bring It Back!"September 12, 2018.
- ^"McKinley Memorial, (sculpture)".Smithsonian Institution.RetrievedJanuary 4,2022.
- ^Jules Heller; Nancy G. Heller (December 19, 2013).North American Women Artists of the Twentieth Century: A Biographical Dictionary.Routledge.ISBN978-1-135-63882-5.
- ^"The West Pediment – Information Sheet"(PDF).Supreme Court of the United States.RetrievedMarch 17,2007.
- ^"CRITICISES MUSEUM SCULPTURE SETTINGS; Robert Aitken Says Famous Venus de Milo in the Louvre Is Worst Placed of All. STIRS FEDERATION OF ARTS Academician Hits at the Metropolitan Among Home Museums and Dwells on" Poor Lighting ""(pdf).New York Times.May 21, 1920.RetrievedJanuary 30,2011.
- ^"Robert Ingersoll Aitken".Olympedia.RetrievedJuly 29,2020.
Further reading[edit]
- Goode, James M.The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington, D.C.,Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C., 1974
- Gurney, George,Sculpture and the Federal Triangle,Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington D.C., 1985
- Hunter, Marie Nau,Missouri and Mississippi: Robert Ingersoll Aitken's Sculpture in Jefferson City, Missouri,Master's Thesis, University of Missouri-Columbia, 1996
- Opitz, Glenn B, Editor,Mantle Fielding’s Dictionary of American Painters, Sculptors & Engravers,Apollo Book, Poughkeepsie, NY, 1986
- Proske, Beatrice Gilman,Brookgreen Gardens Sculpture,Brookgreen Gardens, South Carolina, 1968
External links[edit]
- Robert Ingersoll Aitken papers, 1902–(ca. 1949)from the Smithsonian'sArchives of American Art
- Smithsonian American Art Museum's list of works
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
- 1878 births
- 1949 deaths
- American architectural sculptors
- American male sculptors
- Artists from San Francisco
- San Francisco Art Institute alumni
- San Francisco Art Institute faculty
- 20th-century American sculptors
- 20th-century American male artists
- National Sculpture Society members
- Sculptors from California
- American coin designers
- Olympic competitors in art competitions
- Members of the American Academy of Arts and Letters
- 20th-century medallists