The 'Spirit of the Navy' group (installed 1902) depicts American sailors boarding a vessel at sea. They are urged on by a 'Genius of Patriotism,' the officer with the bullhorn. The Eagle reigns supreme spreading its wings next to a bare breasted Amphitrite (wife of Neptune) representing sea victory. Everyone appears resolute. A young African-American sailor kneels on one knee and holds a pistol in hand by a naval mortar. Enlisted men, in their berets, surround the officer. Not many black Americans were depicted heroically in public monuments in this era — let alone, a young boy. At the height of the Civil War, there were only about 58,000 sailors and they were considered a disreputable bunch. They were often drunk (there was a twice-daily liquor ration) and they were known to raise hell on shore. Frederick William MacMonnies was the sculptor. Frank MacMonnies, a brother of Frederick, obtained on loan from the Navy pikes, cutlasses and pistols, which he sent to Frederick in Paris, France.
Frederick William MacMonnies
(b. 1863 Brooklyn, NY d. NYC 1937)
was a popular American sculptor who began modeling figures at age 5. He studied art in New York City at the Cooper Union and at the Art Students League. At age 20, he won an award from the National Academy of Design.He studied for four years with Augustus Saint-Gaudens, and through him met Stanford White and Charles F. McKim from McKim, Mead & White. In 1884, the two architects loaned MacMonnies money to study in Europe. He spent time in Paris (at the Academie Colarossi and the Ιcole des Beaux-Arts, 1884, 1887-8) and Munich Akademie (1884-5). He became the sculpture assistant to Alexandre Falguiere for four years. In 1886, he won the prix d'atelier, the highest award given to foreigners by the Ιcole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, for his sculpture of 'Pegasus.' He established his own studio in Paris in 1887. He won honorable mention at the Paris Salon of 1889 with his life-size sculpture of 'Diana' (plaster; whereabouts unknown), and second-place gold medal in 1891 for his sculpture of the American patriot 'Nathan Hale'. He was the first American to receive such an award at the Paris Salon. 'Nathan Hale' perhaps his most famous sculpture is in City Hall Park. He made 'James S. T. Stranahan' (1891), which is in Prospect Park. He began to prosper by creating fluid mythological creatures (primarily for fountains) in the Art Nouveau style. MacMonnies trained and inspired a generation of American sculptors. He employed studio assistants and French and American foundries to cast bronze productions of his statues in varying sizes. It was a lucrative business. MacMonnies sculpted the three bronze groups for the arch of the Soldiers and Sailors Monument (Prospect Park, Brooklyn) and the sculpture, 'Horse Tamer,' also in Prospect Park. He created the 'Winged Victory 'at the U.S. military academy at West Point, New York. He made four spandrels for the Washington Square Arch. He designed the Columbian Fountain for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. His 39 figures included the 'Barge of State,' a colossal temporary fountain made from a mixture of plaster and straw called 'staff,' that was later destroyed. In 1896, his bronze, over-life-size 'Bacchante and Infant Faun' was unveiled at the Boston Public Library. The public was scandalized, and the bronze had to be taken away. Charles McKim later presented it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, where it attracted attention. His 1922 statue of 'Civic Virtue,' nicknamed 'the Rough Guy,' was intended for City Hall Park, but because of criticism, it was removed to Foley Square, and now sits neglected in Queens by the Borough Hall. It depicts a male 'Justice' standing over two prone female figures 'Vice.' It is misogynistic to some. He said the sculpture was allegorical. His largest monument was the Marne Memorial at Meaux, France, which was a gift of the American people as thanks for the Statue of Liberty. It stands 75 feet tall. He died of pneumonia.
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1) Prospect Park & Vicinity Map [19]
