The Washington herald., 1922-05-28
WASHINGTON ART
Lincoln Memorial Shown
From Artists Standpoint
Is Most Impressive Work of Sculpture Yet Pro-
< duced in the United States, Many ),
Admirers Believe


6y G6N1 MULE N2Sf1A>
The important event Of Memorial
Day In washington will be the
formal dedication of the new Lin
coin Memorial Monument, on Tues
day, May 30, with an elaborate pro-
gram under the direction of the
Commissioner Of Parks and Grounds.
Col. C. o. Sheriff.. The presence
of the Fine Arts Commission, the
architect, the sculptor. and the dec
orator besides others who have
participated In the great undertak-
ing. will lend a deeper interest and
significance to the occasion Each
has given us q statement Of his
purpose. through the office OF Com
mission OF Fine Arts. of which Mr..
Charles Moore Is chairman.
Twenty years ago the first plans
were accepted for a memorial to
Lincoln. that he might be COM
memorated in a monument as i'm
posing as that to Washington. BY
act of Congress approved February
., 1911. the Lincoln Memorial Com
mission of seven members was
created, composed OF william H.
Taft. shelby NJ. Cullom, Joseph G.
Cannon. George Peabody wetmore,
Samuel Walker Mccall, Hermando
d. Money, and the late Champ Clark.
who were empowered to procure
and determine upon a location, plan
and design. 3D.. subject to the ap-
proval of Congress-" the total sum
not to exceed 100000 and there
was appropriated $4,000 to be i'm
mediately available.
The amount already expended
through later appropriations. Is now
s2,93S.720. exclusive OF the lagoon
construction and roads and walks
, around the memorial
Choice of style.
The choice OF the Greek Doric
style was made because its simple
dignity was believed to best typtfy
the straightforward life OF Lincoln
and further the accepted design In
its classic lines fitted into the land
scape composition.
In the construction OF the build
ing. the Secretary OF War in Janu-
ary. 1914. asked the advice Of the
Commission OF Fine Arts as to the
marble best suited for the purpose,
and after consideration Of various
samples, the Colorado-Yule marble
was selected, the quarries being in
the Rocky Mountains, about 800
miles west OF Denver. An important
item was the fact that these quar-
ries alone could produce satisfac-
tory stones of the size required, for
the great columns OF the colonnade.
a. feet high and Z feet inches In
diameter at their base. Before be-
ing brought from the quarries the
columns were set in position" we
are told, land measured to the
64-1oo of an inch, so that the pieces
would fit exactly when set in Aace
in the memorial. The sum OF s40,-
900 was spent one winter by the
contractors to keep the railroad
tracks open TO the quaries and to
continue the quarrying." Contrac-
tors for building the memorial were
the George A Fuller Company. as
sisted by ]. F. Manning, of this. city.
Created By French.
The best known of American
scuIptors, Daniel Chester French,
was chosen to create the heroic
Lincoln" twenty-one feet high
without the pedestal. and weighing
$50 tons. The figure of Lincoln
measures nineteen feet from top of
head to sole of shoe, He is repre-
sented seated in a great arm 1chair
twelve and one-half feet high, over
the back of which Is draped a flag
The statute, which is of Georgia
marble, was cut by Piccirilli Broth
ers, marble cutters, of New York
City. The sculptor spent four years
in producing the statue.
Daniel Chester French is particu-
larly well known in Washington,
where We have his recent Admiral
Dupont Memorial Fountain in Du-
pont Circle. the Archie Butt-Frank
Z Millet Fountain below the White
House. and in the Capitol his earlier
statue of Gen. Lewis Cass. French,
who was born in Exeter. n. H,
April 20, 1850, studied IN Italy under
Thomas Ball. an American sculptor
living in Florence. Ball was the
artist OF the group, Lincoln Free
ing the Slave" in Lincoln Park,
Washington, a replica. of which, by
the same sculptor. is erected in
Park Square. Boston. French is
noted for many other compositions,
including the statue of Abraham
Lincoln at Lincoln, Neb.
The architect. Henry Bacon, was
born at Watseca, ILL.,, November %.
1855. He entered the University of
Illinois, class OF 1883. but did not
graduate. From 1855 to 1883 he
was in the office of Chamberlin and
"niuucns dECnlIeClS OF BOSTON,, aIIer
which he entered the office of Nc
Kim, Mead and White, of New York
City. The following year. before
he was %, he won the Rotch Travel
ing Scholarship, which enabled him
to spend two years in Europe. In
1888 he established his own office in
New York City. He is a fellow of
the American Institute of Architects
ana member of the American
Academy of Arts and Letters
By Jules Glerfn-
The decorator Of the Lincoln Me-
mortal, Jules Guerin. whose two
beautiful panels in color, must be
studied and interpreted to be fully
appreciated. was born in St. Louis.
Mo-. in 1856, and was a pupil Of
Benjamin Constant and Jean Paul
| /MN |