- see also Robert Aitken
Robert Aitken may refer to:* Sir Robert Aitken, New Zealand physician and university administrator* Robert Aitken , American publisher* Robert Aitken , Canadian flutist and composer...
Robert Ingersoll Aitken (May 8, 1878 – January 3, 1949) was an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sculptorSculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard and/or plastic material, sound, and/or text and or light, commonly stone , metal, glass, or wood. Some sculptures are created directly by finding or carving; others are assembled, built together and fired, welded, molded,...
.
Born in San Francisco, Aitken studied there at the Mark Hopkins Institute of Art with
Douglas TildenDouglas Tilden was a world-famous deaf sculptor who went to the California School for the Deaf in Berkeley, California . Tilden became deaf after a severe bout of scarlet fever. After graduating from the CA School for the Deaf, he went on to attend UC Berkeley, but then left to study art in Paris...
. From 1901 until 1904 he was an instructor at the Institute. In 1904 he moved to Paris where he continued his studies. He returned to New York City after his sojourn in Paris and was employed as an instructor at the
Art Students LeagueThe Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...
.
His works include the
Science fountain and
Great Rivers statues at the
Missouri State CapitolThe Missouri State Capitol is the state capitol building of the U.S. state of Missouri. Housing the Missouri General Assembly, it is located in the state capital of Jefferson City at 201 West Capitol Avenue. The domed building was designed by the New York architectural firm of Tracy and Swartwout...
, the "
Iron MikeIron Mike is the de facto name of various monuments commemorating servicemen of the United States military. The term "Iron Mike" is uniquely American slang used to refer to men who are especially tough, brave, and inspiring...
" statue at
Parris Island, South CarolinaMarine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island is an 8,095 acre military installation near Beaufort, South Carolina tasked with the training of enlisted Marines. Male recruits living east of the Mississippi River and female recruits from all over the United States report here to receive their initial...
, several military sculptures at
West PointThe United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. Established in 1802, USMA is the oldest of the United States's five service academies. The military garrison at West Point was occupied in 1778 and played a key...
, the
Temple of MusicThe Temple of Music was a concert hall and auditorium built for the Pan-American Exposition held in Buffalo, New York. It was inside the hall where U.S. President William McKinley was assassinated on September 6, 1901. The hall was demolished following the fair.- The Building :The Temple of Music...
and the Dewey Monument in
San Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco is the fourth most populous city in California and the 12th most populous city in the United States, with a 2008 estimated population of 808,976. It is the eighth most densely populated city in the U.S. and is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the larger San...
, and sculptural works for the
Liberty MemorialThe Liberty Memorial, located in Kansas City, Missouri, USA, houses the The National World War I Museum, as designated by the United States Congress in 2004...
in
Kansas City, MissouriKansas City is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties. It is one of two county seats of Jackson County, the other being Independence, just to the city's east...
.
- see also Robert Aitken
Robert Aitken may refer to:* Sir Robert Aitken, New Zealand physician and university administrator* Robert Aitken , American publisher* Robert Aitken , Canadian flutist and composer...
Robert Ingersoll Aitken (May 8, 1878 – January 3, 1949) was an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sculptorSculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard and/or plastic material, sound, and/or text and or light, commonly stone , metal, glass, or wood. Some sculptures are created directly by finding or carving; others are assembled, built together and fired, welded, molded,...
.
Born in San Francisco, Aitken studied there at the Mark Hopkins Institute of Art with
Douglas TildenDouglas Tilden was a world-famous deaf sculptor who went to the California School for the Deaf in Berkeley, California . Tilden became deaf after a severe bout of scarlet fever. After graduating from the CA School for the Deaf, he went on to attend UC Berkeley, but then left to study art in Paris...
. From 1901 until 1904 he was an instructor at the Institute. In 1904 he moved to Paris where he continued his studies. He returned to New York City after his sojourn in Paris and was employed as an instructor at the
Art Students LeagueThe Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...
.
His works include the
Science fountain and
Great Rivers statues at the
Missouri State CapitolThe Missouri State Capitol is the state capitol building of the U.S. state of Missouri. Housing the Missouri General Assembly, it is located in the state capital of Jefferson City at 201 West Capitol Avenue. The domed building was designed by the New York architectural firm of Tracy and Swartwout...
, the "
Iron MikeIron Mike is the de facto name of various monuments commemorating servicemen of the United States military. The term "Iron Mike" is uniquely American slang used to refer to men who are especially tough, brave, and inspiring...
" statue at
Parris Island, South CarolinaMarine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island is an 8,095 acre military installation near Beaufort, South Carolina tasked with the training of enlisted Marines. Male recruits living east of the Mississippi River and female recruits from all over the United States report here to receive their initial...
, several military sculptures at
West PointThe United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. Established in 1802, USMA is the oldest of the United States's five service academies. The military garrison at West Point was occupied in 1778 and played a key...
, the
Temple of MusicThe Temple of Music was a concert hall and auditorium built for the Pan-American Exposition held in Buffalo, New York. It was inside the hall where U.S. President William McKinley was assassinated on September 6, 1901. The hall was demolished following the fair.- The Building :The Temple of Music...
and the Dewey Monument in
San Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco is the fourth most populous city in California and the 12th most populous city in the United States, with a 2008 estimated population of 808,976. It is the eighth most densely populated city in the U.S. and is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the larger San...
, and sculptural works for the
Liberty MemorialThe Liberty Memorial, located in Kansas City, Missouri, USA, houses the The National World War I Museum, as designated by the United States Congress in 2004...
in
Kansas City, MissouriKansas City is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties. It is one of two county seats of Jackson County, the other being Independence, just to the city's east...
. Aitken also produced the "Fountain of Earth" for San Francisco's Panama Pacific Exposition.
Perhaps his most famous work is the West
PedimentThis article is about the architectural element. For the landform, see Pediment .A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice...
of the
United States Supreme Court buildingThe Supreme Court Building is the seat of the Supreme Court of the United States. It is situated in Washington, D.C. at 1 First Street, NE, on the block immediately east of the United States Capitol. The building is under the jurisdiction of the Architect of the Capitol...
, which bears the inscription
Equal Justice Under Law. The sculpture, above the entrance to the Supreme Court building, is of nine figures — Lady 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 of
LibertyGoddesses named for and representing the concept Liberty have existed in many cultures, including classical examples dating from the Roman Empire and some national symbols such as the British "Britannia" or the Irish "Kathleen Ni Houlihan"....
with
Chief JusticeThe Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the United States federal court system and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States...
Charles Evans HughesCharles Evans Hughes Sr. was a lawyer and Republican politician from the State of New York. He served as Governor of New York , United States Secretary of State , Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States and Chief Justice of the United States...
. Many of his works were carved by the
Piccirilli BrothersThe Piccirilli Brothers were a family of renowned marble carvers who carved a large number of the most significant marble sculptures in the United States, including Daniel Chester French’s colossal Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C.-History:In 1888, Giuseppe Piccirilli , a...
, including the pieces for the National Archives Building.
External links