Alexander Milne Calder

Alexander Milne Calder (August 23, 1846 – June 14, 1923) (MILL-nee) was a Scottish-American sculptor. His works include the Equestrian statue of George Meade in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia. He produced over 250 architectural sculptures over 30 years for the construction of Philadelphia City Hall including the 37-foot statue of William Penn atop the structure. His son, Alexander Stirling Calder, and grandson Alexander Calder were also sculptors.

Early life and education

Calder was born on August 23, 1846,<ref name=Marquis>Template:Cite book</ref> in Aberdeen, Scotland, and first learned to carve stone from his father, a tombstone carver.<ref name=Perl>Template:Cite book</ref> He attended the Royal Academy in Edinburgh and studied with sculptor John Rhind. He traveled to Paris and London where he studied at the South Kensington School and worked on the Albert Memorial. In 1868, he emigrated to the United States and settled in Philadelphia, where he studied with Thomas Eakins at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.Template:Sfn

Career

In 1872, he was hired by architect John McArthur Jr., to produce models for the sculptures adorning Philadelphia City Hall.Template:Sfn The commission required more than 250 marble and bronze pieces over the 30 year construction.<ref name=Perloff>Template:Cite web</ref> That same year, Calder was commissioned by the forerunner of Philadelphia's current Association for Public Art, the Fairmount Park Art Association, to create an equestrian statue of Major General George Gordon Meade which was installed in 1887.<ref name=afpa>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1875, he won the competition to create the bronze statue of William Penn for the new City Hall. In 1877, Calder used one of the offices in city hall as his studio and worked there through the construction period.Template:Sfn The statue is 37 feet tall,Template:Sfn and weighs over 53,000 pounds.<ref name=Salisbury>Template:Cite web</ref> Calder originally made a clay model nine-feet tall and kept enlarging it until it reached 37 feet tall. The sculpture sat unfinished for 2 years until the Tacony Iron and Metal Works opened in 1889 with the capacity to cast the statue. The statue was cast in 1892<ref name=Salisbury/> and originally displayed in the courtyard of city hall for a year until it was installed in 14 separate pieces atop the tower. The statue was dedicated on November 18, 1894.Template:Sfn The sculpture of Penn is the largest atop any building in the world.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Sfn<ref>DK Travel, DK Eyewitness Travel Guide to Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Dutch Country, Westminster: Penguin Random House, 2017, 74-5.</ref> Calder was frustrated that the statue was installed facing northeast toward Penn Treaty ParkTemplate:Sfn rather than south as he wanted. This positioning results in the statue face being in shadow except in early morning light.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Philadelphia City Hall also contains 250 relief and free-standing statues from Calder<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and his assistant James G. C. Hamilton.Template:Sfn

Calder died on June 14, 1923,<ref name=Marquis/> at his home in Philadelphia<ref name=afpa/> and was interred at West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Legacy

A historical plaque at Philadelphia City Hall highlights Calder's work on the building.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His son, Alexander Stirling Calder, and grandson Alexander Calder were also sculptors.<ref name=Perloff/> Works from Alexander Milne Calder will be displayed at a new museum under construction for his grandson's work in Philadelphia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Gallery

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  Equestrian statue of George Meade, Fairmount Park (1887)
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  William Warner Tomb, Laurel Hill Cemetery<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
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  73rd Pennsylvania Infantry monument, Gettysburg Battlefield (1889)
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  Indian Figure, prior to installation on City Hall, c. 1892
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  William Penn Statue on display in City Hall courtyard
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  William Penn (1894), atop Philadelphia City Hall
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  Architectural sculptures on the South Portal
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  Sculptures on City Hall column capital

References

Citations <references />

Sources

• Template:Cite book
• Template:Cite book

Additional reading

• Bach, Penny Balkin, Public Art in Philadelphia, Temple University Press, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1992 Template:ISBN
• Fairmount Park Association, Sculpture of a City: Philadelphia's Treasures in Bronze and Stone, Walker Publishing Co., Inc, NY. NY 1974 Template:ISBN
• Hayes, Margaret Calder Three Alexander Calders, Paul S Eriksson Publisher, Middlebury, Vermont, 1977 Template:ISBN
• Williams, Oliver P., County Courthouses of Pennsylvania: A Guide, Stackpole Books, Mechanicsburg, PA 2001 Template:ISBN

External links

• Alexander Milne Calder page at Philadelphia Public Art
• Plaque honoring Alexander Milne Calder at Philadelphia Public Art
• Template:Find a Grave