Cover image by Jim.henderson via Wikimedia Commons (CC0). I have cropped it from the original.
This breathtaking statue of Joan of Arc Memorial statue by Anna Hyatt Huntington was installed in New York City’s Riverside Park in 1915 and is about to turn one hundred years old!
The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Art Gallery at Columbia University just opened an exhibition, Goddess, Heroine, Beast: Anna Hyatt Huntington’s New York Sculpture, 1902–1936, about the life and career of this remarkable artist. Anna Hyatt Huntington was one of the first American female artists to achieve widespread success, particularly in the realm of public sculpture. Her works can be found in many of New York’s most important artistic and cultural institutions and public spaces. An online map of her public sculptures in New York City is planned by the Wallach but is not yet available.
Anna seems to have been every bit as feisty and formidable as the women she chose to represent in her sculptures. Following the success of the Joan of Arc sculpture, she apparently dressed up as the character, complete with a horse, to attend a charity ball. I think she and I would have gotten along just fine. 🙂
You can also read my much longer and more detailed article about Anna Hyatt Huntington, which includes information about where to see her works, at this link. And Joan of Arc isn’t the only monumental equestrian statue by Anna Hyatt Huntington you can see in New York City. There’s also El Cid, representing a Spanish hero, at the Hispanic Society Museum and Library – one of NYC’s most under-rated art museums.
Sources:
Higonnet, Anne. “Wild at Heart: Rediscovering the sculpture of Anna Hyatt Huntington”. The Magazine Antiques. vol.181, no.1 (Jan/Feb 2014). p.174-181.
