Guardian Angel, [Plaster Model]
Dublin Core
Title
Guardian Angel, [Plaster Model]
Subject
Figure sculpture, American--20th century
Description
Sketch model for 1939 New York World's Fair United States Building Competition. An angel rises above a mother and daughter. The angel holds a bird in his right hand. Plaster is mounted on marble base.
"The Guardian Angel is a large figure who stands behind two smaller figures. The tall guardian figure does not carry a flag, but the lines of these are very reminiscent of the Pro Patria. I am thinking in retrospect that Propatria is the female figure with the flag above and behind two standing nude male figures who shake hands. The Guardian Angel stands in front of a woman and a child. Both exist in 30-35 inch tall models only. They were never enlarged to the 30-35 feet tall that Marshall intended. The New York Worlds Fair decided that the sculptures would compete with the Trilon and the Perisphere that had been selected as the centerpiece for the fair. The Guardian Angel and the Propatria may have been designed for the same space as the Trilon and the Perisphere. I was not able to determine that from Marshall in my brief chat with him this afternoon (December 17, 1990) in his studio in Detroit. He has just recently had John Mingle in Atlanta, cast two versions on Pro Patria, and one cast of The Guardian Angel. (I may have those two reversed). Several weeks, or a couple months ago, when I was in his studio, he was in the process of adding stylized loinclothes to the private parts of the male Guardian Angel and the male boy in that sculpture. He had Mingle make a cast, one bronze coast with loinclothes and one without. He had a commission from someone in the greater Detroit are for Pro Patria with the loinclothes. The three sculptures were lying on a table when I saw them today in the studio. The one commissioned cast was slightly darker green than the other two.
"The Guardian Angel is a large figure who stands behind two smaller figures. The tall guardian figure does not carry a flag, but the lines of these are very reminiscent of the Pro Patria. I am thinking in retrospect that Propatria is the female figure with the flag above and behind two standing nude male figures who shake hands. The Guardian Angel stands in front of a woman and a child. Both exist in 30-35 inch tall models only. They were never enlarged to the 30-35 feet tall that Marshall intended. The New York Worlds Fair decided that the sculptures would compete with the Trilon and the Perisphere that had been selected as the centerpiece for the fair. The Guardian Angel and the Propatria may have been designed for the same space as the Trilon and the Perisphere. I was not able to determine that from Marshall in my brief chat with him this afternoon (December 17, 1990) in his studio in Detroit. He has just recently had John Mingle in Atlanta, cast two versions on Pro Patria, and one cast of The Guardian Angel. (I may have those two reversed). Several weeks, or a couple months ago, when I was in his studio, he was in the process of adding stylized loinclothes to the private parts of the male Guardian Angel and the male boy in that sculpture. He had Mingle make a cast, one bronze coast with loinclothes and one without. He had a commission from someone in the greater Detroit are for Pro Patria with the loinclothes. The three sculptures were lying on a table when I saw them today in the studio. The one commissioned cast was slightly darker green than the other two.
Creator
Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998
Date
1939
Rights
Use of this image requires permission from the Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum
Type
Sculpture
Coverage
University Center (Mich.)
Sculpture Item Type Metadata
Physical Dimensions
38"
Materials
Plaster
Catalog Number
2000.269
Object Location
Sculptors Studio
Provenance
11/15/2000 gifted to MFSM
March/April 2003 relocated to Sculptor's Studio
March/April 2003 relocated to Sculptor's Studio
Files
Citation
Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998, “Guardian Angel, [Plaster Model],” Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum, accessed April 25, 2024, https://omeka.svsu.edu/items/show/6367.