From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
1934 public artwork in Los Angeles
The
Astronomers Monument
in front of
Griffith Observatory
in
Los Angeles, California
is a
New Deal artwork
created under the auspices of the
Public Works of Art Project
. The large outdoor concrete sculpture honors the work of six great
astronomers
and is a
Griffith Park
landmark in its own right.
History and design
[
edit
]
The
Astronomers Monument
pays homage to six of the greatest astronomers of all time:
Hipparchus
(
fl.
150 BC
),
Nicolaus Copernicus
(1473?1543),
Galileo Galilei
(1564?1642),
Johannes Kepler
(1571?1630),
Isaac Newton
(1642?1727), and
William Herschel
(1738?1822).
In December 1933, the
Los Angeles Park Commission
and the
Public Works of Art Project
(PWAP) commissioned a sculpture project for the grounds of the under-construction Griffith Observatory. Using a design by local artist
Archibald Garner
and materials donated by the Women's Auxiliary of the
Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce
, six artists?Garner,
Roger Noble Burnham
(creator of
USC
's
Tommy Trojan
),
Djey El Djey
(1905-1980, real name Djey Owens),
Gordon Newell
(1905?1998),
[1]
George Stanley
(creator of the famous
Oscar
statuette presented at the
Academy Awards
), and
Arnold Foerster
(1878?1943)?sculpted and cast the concrete monument and figures.
[2]
Each artist was responsible for sculpting one astronomer: Stanley did Newton,
[3]
Garner sculpted Copernicus,
[4]
Newell was responsible for Kepler,
[5]
etc. (Burnham
may
have created the depiction of Hershel; the authorship of the Hipparchus and Galileo figures is unclear.)
According to the
Los Angeles Times
art critic
Arthur Millier
in 1934, the "original idea" was Foerster's, and he was "responsible for the delicate engineering entailed in pouring a forty-foot concrete shaft."
[2]
The monument is topped with an
armillary sphere
, originally concrete, replaced with a bronze piece in 1991.
[4]
On November 25, 1934, almost six months prior to the opening of the Observatory on May 14, 1935, a celebration took place to mark completion of the
Astronomers Monument
. The only "signature" on the
Astronomers Monument
is "PWAP 1934," referring to the program which funded the project and the year in which it was completed.
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Gordon Newell - Biography"
.
www.askart.com
.
Archived
from the original on 2022-10-15
. Retrieved
2022-10-15
.
- ^
a
b
Millier, Arthur
(June 3, 1934). "Art Withstands Scrutiny of Hard-Boiled Politicians: Planetarium Obelisk, Park Fountain, Other, Massive Works Continue Under F.E.R.A.".
Los Angeles Times
. p. 2.
- ^
Nichols, Chris (February 26, 2016).
"Meet George Stanley, Sculptor of the Academy Award Los Angeles Magazine"
.
Los Angeles Magazine
. Retrieved
2022-10-15
.
- ^
a
b
"Astronomers Monument, (sculpture)"
.
siris-artinventories.si.edu
. Retrieved
2022-10-15
.
- ^
"Jeff gerner, Astronomer's Monument, Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles"
.
www.publicartinla.com
.
Archived
from the original on 2022-10-13
. Retrieved
2022-10-15
.
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