Benjamin Victor (sculptor)

Last updated
Benjamin Victor
Born (1979-01-16) 16 January 1979 (age 45)
Bakersfield, California, United States
Alma mater Northern State University
Known for Sculpture
Website benjaminvictor.com

Benjamin Matthew Victor (b. Taft, California, January 16, 1979) is an American sculptor living and working in Boise, Idaho. [1] He is the only living artist to have three works in the National Statuary Hall in the United States Capitol. [2] He is currently sculpting his fourth statue for the Statuary Hall, of Daisy Bates. He was only 26 years old when his first statue, Sarah Winnemucca, a Paiute activist in Nevada, was dedicated in the Hall in 2005, making him the youngest artist to ever be represented in the Hall. [3] [4] In 2014, his sculpture of Norman Borlaug, "the father of the Green Revolution," was dedicated in the National Statuary Hall [5] and in 2019, his statue of Chief Standing Bear, a Native American rights leader, was dedicated in the National Statuary Hall making him the only living artist to have three sculptures in the Hall. [6]

Contents

Early life

Benjamin Matthew Victor was born in 1979 in Taft, California. He grew up in Bakersfield. After completing high school, he lived in for a time in Las Vegas, Nevada. He attended Northern State University in Aberdeen, South Dakota, studying art and sculpture. [3] [7]

Career

Victor’s first work to receive attention was a life-size statue of the biblical character Samson, sculpted when the artist was a sophomore art major at Northern State University. The piece earned Victor a scholarship "in recognition of his aesthetic and conceptual integrity" from the prestigious National Sculpture Society in New York City. At age 23, Victor was commissioned to produce his proposal of a trio of soldiers for the Aberdeen Regional Airport War Memorial in South Dakota.

Victor has completed numerous commissions from city, institutions and non-profits for public artworks throughout the West and upper Midwest, often to commemorate individuals or groups. He was commissioned by the state of Nevada to make sculptures of Sarah Winnemucca, a 19th-century Paiute activist, one for installation in 2005 at its capitol and one to be installed as one of Nevada's official works in the United States Statuary Hall in the United States Capitol Building, Washington, D.C. At age 26, Victor was the youngest sculptor to have a work installed at the hall.

In 2016, Judi M. gaiashkibos, executive director of the Nebraska Commission on Indian Affairs, contacted Victor about creating a statue of Standing Bear (Ponca) for the Centennial Mall at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. [8] It was installed in 2017. [9] When gaiashkibos learned of a plan replace the two statues allotted for Nebraska in the National Statuary Hall in Washington, D. C., she contacted Victor again to make another sculpture of Standing Bear. [10] The installation of the statue in Statuary Hall was held in 2019, with gaiashkibos's daughter, Katie Brossy in attendance. [10] Using the surplus funds from those raised to erect the Standing Bear statues, gaiashkibos hired Victor in 2021 to sculpt Susan La Flesche Picotte (Omaha), the first Native woman to be licensed as a physician in the US for the Centennial Mall at the university. [11] [12]

Notable works

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sarah Winnemucca</span> Northern Paiute author, activist, and educator (c. 1844 –1891)

Sarah Hopkins was a Northern Paiute writer, activist, lecturer, teacher, and school organizer. Her Northern Paiute name was Thocmentony, also spelled Tocmetone, which translates as "Shell Flower."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Statuary Hall</span> Chamber in the United States Capitol

The National Statuary Hall is a chamber in the United States Capitol devoted to sculptures of prominent Americans. The hall, also known as the Old Hall of the House, is a large, two-story, semicircular room with a second story gallery along the curved perimeter. It is located immediately south of the Rotunda. The meeting place of the U.S. House of Representatives for nearly 50 years (1807–1857), after a few years of disuse it was repurposed as a statuary hall in 1864; this is when the National Statuary Hall Collection was established. By 1933, the collection had outgrown this single room, and a number of statues are placed elsewhere within the Capitol.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gutzon Borglum</span> American sculptor (1867–1941)

John Gutzon de la Mothe Borglum was an American sculptor best known for his work on Mount Rushmore. He is also associated with various other public works of art across the U.S., including Stone Mountain in Georgia, statues of Union General Philip Sheridan in Washington D.C. and in Chicago, as well as a bust of Abraham Lincoln exhibited in the White House by Theodore Roosevelt and now held in the United States Capitol crypt in Washington, D.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Statuary Hall Collection</span> Collection of statues in the US Capitol

The National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol is composed of statues donated by individual states to honor persons notable in their history. Limited to two statues per state, the collection was originally set up in the old Hall of the House of Representatives, which was then renamed National Statuary Hall. The expanding collection has since been spread throughout the Capitol and its visitor center.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kentucky State Capitol</span> State capitol building of the U.S. state of Kentucky

The Kentucky State Capitol is located in Frankfort and is the house of the three branches of the state government of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Henry Niehaus</span> American sculptor

Charles Henry Niehaus was an American sculptor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ulysses S. Grant Memorial</span> Presidential memorial in Washington, D.C.

The Ulysses S. Grant Memorial is a presidential memorial in Washington, D.C., honoring American Civil War general and 18th president of the United States, Ulysses S. Grant. It sits at the base of Capitol Hill, below the west front of the United States Capitol. Its central sculpture of Grant on horseback faces west, overlooking the Capitol Reflecting Pool and facing toward the Lincoln Memorial, which honors Grant's wartime president, Abraham Lincoln. Grant's statue is raised on a pedestal decorated with bronze reliefs of the infantry; flanking pedestals hold statues of protective lions and bronze representations of the Union cavalry and artillery. The whole is connected with marble covered platforms, balustrades, and stairs. The Grant and Lincoln memorials define the eastern and western ends, respectively, of the National Mall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Capitol rotunda</span> Component of United States Capitol

The United States Capitol building features a central rotunda below the Capitol dome. Built between 1818 and 1824, the rotunda has been described as the Capitol's "symbolic and physical heart".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nellie Walker</span> American sculptor

Nellie Verne Walker, was an American sculptor best known for her statue of James Harlan formerly in the National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol, Washington D.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hall of Columns</span> Hallway in the United States Capitol

The Hall of Columns is a more than 100-foot-long (30 m) hallway lined with 28 fluted columns in the south wing extension of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. It is also the gallery for 18 statues of the National Statuary Hall Collection.

Paul Fjelde was a noted American sculptor and educator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belle Kinney Scholz</span> American sculptor

Belle Marshall KinneyScholz (1890–1959) was an American sculptor, born in Tennessee who worked and died in New York state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Jefferson Davis (U.S. Capitol)</span> Statue of Jefferson Davis by Henry Augustus Lukeman in Washington, D.C., U.S.

Jefferson Davis, created by Henry Augustus Lukeman, is a bronze sculpture of Jefferson Davis – a U.S. Senator, U.S. Secretary of War, plantation owner and the only President of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War – commissioned by the U.S. State of Mississippi for inclusion in National Statuary Hall Collection at the United States Capitol's National Statuary Hall, in Washington, D.C. The statue was controversial at the time of its unveiling and there have been multiple efforts to remove it from the Capitol since 2015.

Sarah Winnemucca is a bronze sculpture depicting the Northern Paiute author, activist and educator by Benjamin Victor, installed in the United States Capitol Visitor Center's Emancipation Hall, in Washington, D.C., as part of the National Statuary Hall Collection. The statue was gifted by the U.S. state of Nevada in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Roger Williams (U.S. Capitol)</span> Statue by Franklin Simmons

Roger Williams is an 1872 marble sculpture of Roger Williams by Franklin Simmons, installed in the United States Capitol, in Washington, D.C., as part of the National Statuary Hall Collection. It is one of two statues donated by the state of Rhode Island. The sculpture was unveiled by Senator William Sprague of Rhode Island on January 9, 1872.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Roger Sherman</span> Statue by Chauncey Ives

Roger Sherman is an 1872 marble sculpture of Roger Sherman by Chauncey Ives, installed in the United States Capitol, in Washington, D.C., as part of the National Statuary Hall Collection. It is one of two statues donated by the state of Connecticut. The sculpture was unveiled by Senator Orris Sanford Ferry of Connecticut on March 8, 1872.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Jonathan Trumbull</span> Statue by Chauncey Ives

Jonathan Trumbull is an 1872 marble sculpture of Jonathan Trumbull by Chauncey Ives, installed in the United States Capitol, in Washington, D.C., as part of the National Statuary Hall Collection. It is one of two statues donated by the state of Connecticut. The sculpture was unveiled by Senator William Alfred Buckingham of Connecticut on March 8, 1872.

Nebraska's Centennial Mall, also known simply as Centennial Mall, is a seven-block-long public space in Lincoln, Nebraska, stretching from the Nebraska State Capitol building north to the University of Nebraska - Lincoln's city campus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Standing Bear</span> Statue by Benjamin Victor

In 2019, the U.S. state of Nebraska donated a bronze sculpture of Standing Bear by Benjamin Victor to the National Statuary Hall Collection. The statue is installed in the United States Capitol's National Statuary Hall, in Washington, D.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judi M. gaiashkibos</span> Ponca-Santee administrator (born 1953)

Judi M. gaiashkibos is a Ponca-Santee administrator, who has been the executive director of the Nebraska Commission on Indian Affairs since 1995. According to journalist John Mabry, her surname "is pronounced 'gosh-key-bosh' and spelled without a capital in recognition "that the two-legged are not superior to the four". She is an enrolled member of the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska.

References

  1. ↑ "NSU Employee Directory". Northern State University. Archived from the original on 2010-08-25. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  2. ↑ "Benjamin Victor Biography". Benjamin Victor, Professor of the Practice. Retrieved 2017-06-12.
  3. 1 2 "Oilworkers Monument Groundbreaking". The Taft Independent. 2009-04-03. Archived from the original on 2010-03-15. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  4. ↑ "Reid Speech at Sarah Winnemucca Statue Dedication". Democrats.senate.gov. 2005-05-09. Archived from the original on 2010-08-17. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  5. 1 2 "Dr. Norman E. Borlaug". Architect of the Capitol | United States Capitol. Retrieved 2017-06-12.
  6. ↑ ARDIS, KELLY. "Bakersfield native breaks the mold with third statue at US capitol". The Bakersfield Californian. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  7. ↑ "Winnemucca sculptor selected". Las Vegas Review-Journal. 2004-02-10. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  8. ↑ Pluhacek, Zach (December 2, 2016). "Sculpture of Ponca Chief to Grace Centennial Mall". Lincoln Journal Star . Lincoln, Nebraska. p.  B1, B2 . Retrieved July 31, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ Klein, John (April 30, 2018). "Statue of Ponca Chief May Be Headed to D.C." The Daily Oklahoman . Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. p. 6. Retrieved July 31, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  10. 1 2 Lange-Kubick, Cindy (September 20, 2019). "Chief Standing Bear Takes His Place in U.S. Capitol". Fremont Tribune . Fremont, Nebraska. Lee Enterprises. p. A6. Retrieved July 31, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ Johnson, Riley (May 29, 2021). "Statue of 1st Native Doctor Finds a Home". Lincoln Journal Star . Lincoln, Nebraska. pp.  A1, A2 . Retrieved July 31, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ Vanderford, Taryn (October 11, 2021). "Picotte Statue Unveiled". 1011 Now. Lincoln, Nebraska: KOLN. Archived from the original on April 27, 2023. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Belle Babb Mansfield Dedication". Heartland Connection. 2008-04-25. Archived from the original on 2011-09-17. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  14. ↑ "Hoover statue to be unveiled at Smithsonian". aopa.org. 2016-03-17. Retrieved 2017-06-12.
  15. ↑ "Cecil Harris". Northern State University. 2016-11-17. Retrieved 2017-06-12.
  16. ↑ Wells, Aaliyah. "New statue in Centennial Mall honors Chief Standing Bear". The Daily Nebraskan. Retrieved 2017-12-05.
  17. ↑ "N.C. State University to unveil Jim Valvano statue at Reynolds Coliseum gala - Triangle Business Journal". bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  18. ↑ McCormack, Kathy. "Christa McAuliffe, still pioneering, is first woman with a statue on New Hampshire capitol grounds". AP News. Published September 2, 2024. Accessed September 2, 2024.
  19. ↑ "In This Corner | NC State News | NC State University". 2013-01-09. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  20. ↑ "Wells-to-do". Reno News and Reviews. 2006-01-26. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  21. ↑ "Picotte statue unveiled". 1011 Now. Retrieved 2021-10-12.
  22. ↑ "Boise State unveils statue of Lyle Smith; Dhaenens glad to increase production". idahostatesman. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  23. ↑ "Statue honoring Marine Battalion Unveiled in Newport". The Orange County Register. 2007-09-09. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  24. ↑ "Tribute To Be Semper Fi". Newport Beach Daily Pilot. 2007-11-10. Archived from the original on July 8, 2011. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  25. ↑ "New Statue At Boise Airport". Fox News Idaho. 2009-05-25. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  26. ↑ "Sculpture Unveiled on August 4, 2007". Redlin Art Center. 2007-08-04. Archived from the original on March 13, 2010. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
  27. ↑ Curt Elliott (1969-12-31), Oilworker Monument in Taft CA, archived from the original on 2021-12-21, retrieved 2017-06-12
  28. ↑ Elliot, Sean D. (12 October 2018). "Academy honors 'father of Coast Guard'". The Day.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.