Horseless Carriage (Model S Ford Children and Animals - Sunday Afternoon), Releif, [Plaster]

Dublin Core

Title

Horseless Carriage (Model S Ford Children and Animals - Sunday Afternoon), Releif, [Plaster]

Subject

Animal sculpture--20th century
Figure sculpture, American--20th century

Description

Plaster relief model of a man and woman in a Model S car. Two young children run along side, animals including chickens, a dog, pigs and birds can be seen. Exhaust from the car is also seen.

Fredericks carved the original limestone relief of this sculpture that was placed in the public lobby of the Post Office in River Rouge, Michigan in 1939. He received this commission as a result of an honorable mention in a section of Fine Arts Competition.

Because the automobile industry was the most important factor in the development of the Detroit area, the sculptor has chosen to depict one of the very early cars. The "horseless carriage," with its two occupants, speeds along, leaving a trail of dust and smoke. Two children and a dog run delightedly beside the car while pigs and chickens flee in terror.

The "mother" mold is made of plaster and is used to help keep the shape of the flexible rubber mold. The plaster "mother" mold has residue from the microcrystalline wax that's used to make wax models for the lost wax casting method. A didactic panel in the Sculptor's Studio explains the lost wax method of casting.

An image of this sculpture can be seen on page 36 in Marshall M. Fredericks, Sculptor.

Creator

Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998

Date

1939

Rights

Use of this image requires permission from the Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum

Type

Sculpture
Relief Sculpture

Coverage

University Center (Mich.)

Sculpture Item Type Metadata

Physical Dimensions

12" x 12" x 1.5"

Materials

Plaster

Catalog Number

2000.381

Object Location

Sculptors Studio

Provenance

11/15/2000 gifted to MFSM

March/April 2003 relocated to Sculptor's Studio

Files

2000.381.jpg

Citation

Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998, “Horseless Carriage (Model S Ford Children and Animals - Sunday Afternoon), Releif, [Plaster],” Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum, accessed December 23, 2024, https://omeka.svsu.edu/items/show/6521.