Upate: 10/10/2019 ​
The National Sculptors' Guild has just finished installing NSG Fellow Jane DeDecker’s “Arkansas Nineteenth Amendment Memorial” bronze sculpture with its custom designed granite and stainless-steel base in Little Rock, Arkansas. Could it be more gorgeous?!!

Special thanks to the Sculpture at the River Market and City of Little Rock for creating such a beautiful plaza for the sculpture.

NSG Public Art Placement #510
​Installation images shown below

This morning we installed multiple pieces by NSG Fellow Daniel Glanz at the new Riverdale Animal Shelter in Adams County, Colorado

“Leaps and Bounds” at the entry. And “Sweet Dreams” with “Grassland Trio” in the nearby calming garden.

We hope you’ll get a chance to enjoy these placements soon. For now the shelter recommends adopting online as construction finishes up, and as we all await a vaccine for in-person adoptions.

NSG Public Art Placements
​ #518 & 519

#PublicArt #NSG #DanielGlanz #NationalSculptorsGuild #LeapsAndBounds 
#SweetDreams #GrasslandTrio #RiverdaleAnimalShelter #AdoptDontShop
#AdamsCounty #JustInstalled #Bronze #StainlessSteel
#ArtistDriven #ClientMinded

Sculpture Services of Colorado came to the NSG garden to clean Arrgh up before we loaded it up to head to Edmond, OK. We'll miss this pirate in the garden, but happy it'll be enjoyed in its permanent placement.

DESCRIPTION AND SYMBOLISM OF THE MONUMENT:
Anthony and Stanton writing the Nineteenth Amendment is the nucleus,  the beginning of the women’s movement. To the side of the authors stands the elder Sojourner Truth, a beacon for the movement. The young Harriet Stanton Blatch represents the future. From them rises the next generation of the movement, the “daughters” who ratified the nineteenth amendment, represented by Ida B. Wells and Alice Paul. Standing on the shoulders of giants, these women were elevated by what came before. From this height, the ratification flag cascades to the innumerable circles that ripple outwards.

Sojourner Truth, an African-American abolitionist and women’s right activist, was among the first voices of the women’s movement.  She propelled the movement in its early days because she was willing to speak at time when few women did so.  I have depicted her standing on a pulpit to illustrate how she willingly projected her voice against injustices. Her gaze is to the future – to the horizon – looking to a place where women – together – will turn the world “right side up again.”  In my composition, I have sculpted her in her early 50’s, around the time she would have delivered her seminal speech, “Ain’t I a Woman?” Within the composition, she is a guardian of the belief that women should have the right to vote.

I used the same iconic photograph of the coauthors of the Declaration of Sentiments as inspiration for Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, but I depicted them at their age at the time of the writing of the Sentiments. The two women are physically connected in the sculpture, forming a unified force that truly speaks of the oneness of their purpose. Their words, speeches and wisdom launched a worldwide, peaceful revolution. Even today, these two women offer us the courage and the tools to be the stewards of human rights.

At a joint appearance for Hilary Clinton’s campaign, Michelle Obama echoed Stanton’s words: “With every action we take, with every word we utter, we think about the millions of children who are watching us, who hang onto our every word, looking at us to show them who they can and should be.” Just so, Harriet Stanton Blatch hangs on the words of her mother. She has a look of intensity. She feels it. Blatch is nestled between her mother’s hand that holds a pen and foot that breaks the conformities of the base. She holds onto a bonnet, a symbol of the suffragist she will become. Blatch literally grew up during the suffragist movement, and when it was her time, she absorbed the sentiments of her mother’s words: “We’ve got to bring to the President, individually, day by day, week in and week out, the idea that great numbers of women want to be free, will be free.”

Alice Paul and Ida B. Wells are at the peak of the coalescence, one in their mission. Although these two women would not have marched side by side, their juxtaposition at the height of the sculpture, symbolizes their shared vision of equal rights. Neither one of these women would take no for an answer. In the photos of the suffragist women marching, they are wearing elaborate hats, an announcement of their presence in the movement. I have depicted Alice Paul and Ida B. Wells wearing such hats. Both women also hold a flag.

The portrait of Alice Paul is inspired by the photo of her draping the ratification flag with its 36th star over the balcony of the suffrage headquarters in Washington D.C. I chose to depict Paul and this celebratory moment to capture the monumental triumph of the nineteenth amendment, an accumulation of the efforts of thousands of American women. She appears youthful and weightless in this monument, and yet she was militant in her efforts. She dedicated her life to the movement and after the vote continued until her death the work for the equal rights amendment.

Ida B. Wells began her career as an activist at a young age. She fervently rallied against the practice of lynching even with the threat of being lynched herself.  Wells was known for using the pen and her voice to battle sexism, racism, and violence. In this sculpture Wells stands proudly with a flag of the United States, representing the hope for justice and the rights of every human being. The open gesture of her hand outstretched to the other women around her in this monument reinforces the invitation to join the cause.

Contributions to the monument may be made here. A 501(c)(3) status is pending. Proceeds from the sales of the maquettes make the monument possible. Please contact the National Sculptors' Guild to place the 5ft maquette in your public art program. #BePartOfTheCircle

The National Sculptors' Guild and Gary Alsum have been selected to sculpt a full-figure portrait of Gene Bess;  the coach of the men's basketball team at Three Rivers Community College in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. Bess has been at Three Rivers since 1971. His career win-loss record was 1268-368, making him the all-time winningest college basketball coach. 

The College is completing their fundraising for the sculpture, and Gary will work out the composition and begin sculpting this Spring. 

We'll update this post as the project evolves. #WIP

Update 8/20/18: We're working on some of the smaller details that will be part of the overall placement. Look for the Rotary wheel to be incorporated throughout The Legacy plaza. Some will highlight the contributors that are making this art placement possible. Thanks Rotary Club of Thompson Valley!

The project budget is $180,000 of which 50% has been raised. Please help the Thompson Valley Rotary Foundation Reach their Goal. email for details.
​

4/23/17: We're pleased to announce that NSG's Stephen Shachtman won this year's Sculpture at the River Market public art competition. Stay tuned to see it actualized and installed at the Southwest Community Center.

This sculpture represents a culmination of parts forming a stronger, more impactful unit as a result.

The graphic nature of the sculpture is ideal for both ease of viewing while in motion and creating an iconic sculpture for the Community Center campus. Because this site incorporates so many activities and houses several public buildings, the convergence of this is represented in this form - a central piece acts as the hub of all the opportunities the campus offers.

At the heart of the three steel forms is a sphere representing the community. The Steel/Bronze portion of the “A” represents Arkansas. While the individual pieces of the flagstone sphere make up my notion of its people.

Fabricated in CorTen steel, with a Bronze cap at the point of each pillar. The tallest form measures approximately 16-feet high. The overall footprint will span approximately 10ft wide. The center sphere is composed of stacked flagstone pieces which create the stepped sphere form. (Not a perfect smooth sphere, but stepped to create sphere appearance.) The sphere structurally helps connect the three legs, which are then bolted into cement piers. 

I recommend contextualizing the artwork within the broader site by placing it in a large gravel circle of grey breeze, and planting karl foerster grasses within.

John Kinkade and Denny Haskew of the National Sculptors' Guild are in Shakopee, MN to install "I Once Rode Free" at the entrance of the city . 

Working quickly this morning in 27-degree temps, the NSG and Shakopee team secured the twice life-sized bronze bas-relief to its new home. 

Denny was inspired by a quote from Chief Sakpe, "Over these hills I once rode free upon my horse."  The sculpture shows Chief Sakpe standing next to his horse overlooking the land. Chief Shakpee and 37 of his fellow warriors were hanged for defending their home.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community is a federally recognized, sovereign Indian tribe of Mdewakanton Dakota people, located southwest of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, within parts of the cities of Prior Lake and Shakopee. Mdewakanton, pronounced Mid-ah-wah-kah-ton, means "dwellers at the spirit waters." Tribal members are direct lineal descendants of Mdewakanton Dakota people who resided in villages near the banks of the lower Minnesota River. A line of leaders known as Chief Sakpe were spokesmen for their village. The first Sakpe pronounced Shock-pay, meaning "six," was named by his people as such after his wife bore sextuplets. The City of Shakopee later developed near this site and was named for these prominent leaders. 

04/25/16
​Clay Enoch and the National Sculptors' Guild's "United" has been selected for the 2017 Public Monument installation for a site at the historic Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas.
The winner was announced at the Sculpture at the River Market show Sunday at 3pm.

"Our similarities are more striking than our subtle differences"

Allegorical figures raise their arms to interlock their respective rings in the effort to be "UNITED". Incomplete rings indicate that there is still progress to be made. A secondary narrative demonstrates that both sides have a foundation of ideals spanning generations that must be transformed into building blocks toward something greater.

Christopher Owen Nelson is the newest National Sculptors' Guild member, providing some incredible solutions for upcoming public art placements. We are excited to introduce Christopher's unique approach depicting nature in an innovative, contemporary context.

"Through my art, I continue to explore man’s obsession to re-create and perfect nature. My artwork creates a bridge or transition between the man-made and natural worlds.

Through prestigious exhibitions and collections, my artworks have traveled the globe. Already in my career I have presented over a dozen solo exhibitions. Boulder Museum of Art, Boulder, Colorado; The Art Museum at the University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, and St. John’s College, Annapolis, Maryland are among the many museums and universities who have exhibited my work.

I continually look forward to exploring the possibilities that come with developing my craft, creating challenging pieces, forming new ideas, and extending my pursuit of expression through sculpture." -Christopher Owen Nelson

Learn more about Christopher Owen Nelson