Freedom of the Human Spirit, [Bronze]
Dublin Core
Title
Freedom of the Human Spirit, [Bronze]
Subject
Animal sculpture--20th century
Figure sculpture, American--20th century
Figure sculpture, American--20th century
Description
Two nude figures with arms outstretched float upon the geese. They appear to ascend from the ground toward the sky leaving behind a plume or air. The woman rises above the male figure.
"In Flushing, New York, On the grounds of the old site of the United Nations, composition of two figures and two wild swans rising upward in free flight, was erected in the same year (1964). Comissioned for the United States Pavilion at the World's Fair, Freedom of the Human Spirit, twenty-seven feet high, is a striking achievement of poetic movement- a goal Fredericks had pursued from his earliest works."
"Marshall M. Fredericks Sculptor", Suzanne P. Fredericks 2003 Page(s) 10
"I tried to take the male and female figures and free them from the earth. The only reason they stand up in the space at all is because they are suspended by sort of semi-visible abstract forms that keep them in the air, and then there are three giant wild swans flying with them. The idea was that these human beings, these people- us, do not have to be limited to the earth, to the ground. We can free ourselves mentally and spiritually whenever we want to, if we just try to do so." MMF, from Marshall Fredericks: Spirit in Sculpture (videotaped interview), 1987."Marshall Fredericks, Suzanne P. "Marshall M. Fredericks, Sculptor", Saginaw Valley State University, 2003. p. 152
"In Flushing, New York, On the grounds of the old site of the United Nations, composition of two figures and two wild swans rising upward in free flight, was erected in the same year (1964). Comissioned for the United States Pavilion at the World's Fair, Freedom of the Human Spirit, twenty-seven feet high, is a striking achievement of poetic movement- a goal Fredericks had pursued from his earliest works."
"Marshall M. Fredericks Sculptor", Suzanne P. Fredericks 2003 Page(s) 10
"I tried to take the male and female figures and free them from the earth. The only reason they stand up in the space at all is because they are suspended by sort of semi-visible abstract forms that keep them in the air, and then there are three giant wild swans flying with them. The idea was that these human beings, these people- us, do not have to be limited to the earth, to the ground. We can free ourselves mentally and spiritually whenever we want to, if we just try to do so." MMF, from Marshall Fredericks: Spirit in Sculpture (videotaped interview), 1987."Marshall Fredericks, Suzanne P. "Marshall M. Fredericks, Sculptor", Saginaw Valley State University, 2003. p. 152
Creator
Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998
Date
1964
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
27.5" x 11" x 11"
Materials
Bronze
Marble Base
Marble Base
Catalog Number
1998.004
Object Location
Sculptor's Studio
Provenance
1998 Acquired from Fine Arts Sculpture Center
1999 Delivered to MFSM
March/April 2003 relocated to Sculptor's Studio
1999 Delivered to MFSM
March/April 2003 relocated to Sculptor's Studio
Notes
Traveling Exhibit Label
The Freedom of the Human Spirit
1964
Bronze
27 ½"h x 11"w x 11"d
The businessmen backers of the 1964-65 New York World's Fair aspired to produce an economic boom for the city that would rival the hugely successful New York World's Fair of 1939-40 that brought more than 44 million visitors to the city. Many of these planners, kids during the '39-40 Fair, hoped that the experience would be as memorable for their children and families has it had been for them. Dedicated to "Man's Achievement on a Shrinking Globe in an Expanding Universe," the Fair's theme was "Peace through Understanding."
The Fair's Sculpture Committee requested that Marshall Fredericks submit a proposal for a sculpture to be included at the event. Fredericks submitted several sketches and the Committee selected a sketch of two figures with swans. Originally the figures in the sketch had wings, but the review panel requested that Fredericks remove them in the final sculpture. According to the artist, the sculpture "depicts human figures as if soaring in migratory flights with huge swans, an ancient symbol of eternal life."
One of four major sculptures at the Fair, the sculpture stood in the Court of States at the entrance of the U S Government Pavilion. This marked the second time Fredericks contributed a sculpture to a New York World's Fair, as he previously exhibited a fountain at the 1939 Fair. The Freedom of the Human Spirit still stands at its original location in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens borough.
In 1983, Fredericks donated the design for this sculpture to his adopted hometown of Birmingham, Michigan in honor of the city's fiftieth anniversary. Erected in Shain Park, the city financed the sculpture through generous donations from over one thousand individuals and corporations. In 2009, the City renovated the park and relocated the sculpture to an area in the center of the park.
A small-scale casting of Freedom of the Human Spirit serves as the annual Communications Award for the International Center for the Disabled, an organization of which Fredericks was a longtime benefactor. Notable recipients of this award include President George H.W. Bush, Betty Ford, Nancy Reagan and Christopher Reeve.
Cast posthumously
1998.004
"This was the size used for the ICD (International Center for the Disabled) award (their highest one). I think the first one for ICD was given in 1980 but you could confirm with the organization or look in that file in the archives. They were given for other purposes after that and also sold out of the studio. I don't know when the very first cast of this was made or how many were cast over all." Suki Fredericks 3/19/2010
The Freedom of the Human Spirit
1964
Bronze
27 ½"h x 11"w x 11"d
The businessmen backers of the 1964-65 New York World's Fair aspired to produce an economic boom for the city that would rival the hugely successful New York World's Fair of 1939-40 that brought more than 44 million visitors to the city. Many of these planners, kids during the '39-40 Fair, hoped that the experience would be as memorable for their children and families has it had been for them. Dedicated to "Man's Achievement on a Shrinking Globe in an Expanding Universe," the Fair's theme was "Peace through Understanding."
The Fair's Sculpture Committee requested that Marshall Fredericks submit a proposal for a sculpture to be included at the event. Fredericks submitted several sketches and the Committee selected a sketch of two figures with swans. Originally the figures in the sketch had wings, but the review panel requested that Fredericks remove them in the final sculpture. According to the artist, the sculpture "depicts human figures as if soaring in migratory flights with huge swans, an ancient symbol of eternal life."
One of four major sculptures at the Fair, the sculpture stood in the Court of States at the entrance of the U S Government Pavilion. This marked the second time Fredericks contributed a sculpture to a New York World's Fair, as he previously exhibited a fountain at the 1939 Fair. The Freedom of the Human Spirit still stands at its original location in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens borough.
In 1983, Fredericks donated the design for this sculpture to his adopted hometown of Birmingham, Michigan in honor of the city's fiftieth anniversary. Erected in Shain Park, the city financed the sculpture through generous donations from over one thousand individuals and corporations. In 2009, the City renovated the park and relocated the sculpture to an area in the center of the park.
A small-scale casting of Freedom of the Human Spirit serves as the annual Communications Award for the International Center for the Disabled, an organization of which Fredericks was a longtime benefactor. Notable recipients of this award include President George H.W. Bush, Betty Ford, Nancy Reagan and Christopher Reeve.
Cast posthumously
1998.004
"This was the size used for the ICD (International Center for the Disabled) award (their highest one). I think the first one for ICD was given in 1980 but you could confirm with the organization or look in that file in the archives. They were given for other purposes after that and also sold out of the studio. I don't know when the very first cast of this was made or how many were cast over all." Suki Fredericks 3/19/2010
Files
Citation
Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998, “Freedom of the Human Spirit, [Bronze],” Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum, accessed May 14, 2024, https://omeka.svsu.edu/items/show/5274.