Brett-Livingstone Strong

Last updated

Brett-Livingstone Strong
Born
Brett-Livingstone Strong

(1953-10-31) 31 October 1953 (age 70)
Junee, Australia
NationalityAustralian
Known forSculpting, painting, archecture
Notable workUnited States Presidency Monument
AwardsSpirit of America Presidential Award, Grammy, Knighthood.
Patron(s)Dr. Armand Hammer/Hammer Fine Art Museum

Brett-Livingstone Strong (born 31 October 1953) is an Australian-born artist, [1] [2] best known for his historic monumental sculptures and portraits of Hollywood celebrities. [3]

Contents

Career

In 1977, Strong arrived in the United States, he was sponsored by the Australian Trade Commission to present his first American art exhibition in San Francisco, California. In 1978, John Wayne sponsored Strong's US Green Card. Also that year Strong carved the portrait of Wayne's face in a 100+ ton boulder that had fallen onto the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu. [1] [4] In 1978, he sold the sculpture for $1,13 million to an Arizona-based company and it resides in the library of the Lubbock Christian University in Lubbock, Texas. [5]

In 1979, Strong created a life-size bronze statue of John Lennon [4] [6] entitled Imagine. He began work on the sculpture/statue of Lennon prior to the musician's death in 1980. [6]

Strong was commissioned by Michael Jackson to paint his only portrait of Jackson entitled The Book which sold for $2.1 million to Hiromichi Saeki Corp. in 1990, [2] [7] making it the most money paid to a living artist for the sale of a portrait. [8] This portrait is claimed to be the only portrait that Michael Jackson sat for an artist's rendering and made its first appearance since 1992 in July 2009. [2] [7] It was displayed to a public viewing in Harlem near the Apollo Theater. [2] Strong was a close friend and only partner of Jackson in their artistic company titled the Jackson-Strong Alliance. Strong first met Jackson in 1979, their partnership lasted to his death in 2009. Strong's studio formally Jackson's fine art studio, houses a large collection of Jackson's fine art creations. [9]

In the 1980s, Strong completed two monumental sculptural works for the National Monument to the US Constitution and The National Monument For The Bicentennial of The United States Presidency, commissioned by former Chief Justice Warren E. Burger and Ronald Reagan. [10]

In the mid-1980s, Strong's painting Tango became the album cover artwork for the 1987 Fleetwood Mac album Tango in the Night . [11]

In the late 1990s Strong proposed a City of Angels Monument project designed to create a symbol for Los Angeles along the lines of New York's Statue of Liberty or Paris' Eiffel Tower. [1]

After Michael Jackson had nominated Strong for knighthood, the Duke of Gardham made Strong a knight of the Imperial Orders of Constantine the Great and Saint Helen in October 2009, in recognition of Strong's charitable work for children. [12]

Related Research Articles

<i>Tango in the Night</i> 1987 studio album by Fleetwood Mac

Tango in the Night is the fourteenth studio album by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac, released on 13 April 1987 by Warner Records. As a result of Lindsey Buckingham's departure later that year, it is the fifth and final studio album with the band's most successful lineup of Buckingham, Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie, John McVie, and Stevie Nicks, though Christine McVie would make guest appearances on the band's 2003 album, Say You Will. This lineup was not seen again until 1997's live album The Dance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terry Allen (artist)</span> American singer-songwriter

Terry Allen is an American singer-songwriter and visual artist from Lubbock, Texas. Allen's musical career spans several albums in the Texas country and outlaw country genres, and his visual art includes painting, conceptual art, performance, and sculpture, with a number of notable bronze sculptures installed publicly in various cities throughout the United States. He currently lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Pittendrigh Macgillivray</span> Scottish sculptor (1856-1938)

James Pittendrigh MacGillivray was a Scottish sculptor. He was also a keen artist, musician and poet. He was born in Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, the son of a sculptor, and studied under William Brodie and John Mossman. His works include public statues of Robert Burns in Irvine, Lord Byron in Aberdeen, the 3rd Marquess of Bute in Cardiff, John Knox in Edinburgh's St Giles Cathedral, and William Ewart Gladstone in Coates Crescent Gardens, Edinburgh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sculpture of the United States</span>

The history of sculpture in the United States begins in the 1600s "with the modest efforts of craftsmen who adorned gravestones, Bible boxes, and various utilitarian objects with simple low-relief decorations." American sculpture in its many forms, genres and guises has continuously contributed to the cultural landscape of world art into the 21st century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Henry Foley</span> Irish sculptor (1818–1874)

John Henry Foley, often referred to as J. H. Foley, was an Irish sculptor, working in London. He is best known for his statues of Daniel O'Connell for the O'Connell Monument in Dublin, and of Prince Albert for the Albert Memorial in London and for a number of works in India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kehinde Wiley</span> American artist (born 1977)

Kehinde Wiley is an American portrait painter based in New York City. He is known for his naturalistic paintings of black people that reference the work of Old Master paintings. In 2017, Wiley was commissioned to paint former President Barack Obama's portrait for the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. The Columbus Museum of Art hosted an exhibition of his work in 2007 and describes his paintings as "heroic portraits which address the image and status of young African-American men in contemporary culture."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Public art in Central Park</span>

New York City's 843-acre (3.41 km2) Central Park is the home of many works of public art in various media, such as bronze, stone, and tile. Many are sculptures in the form of busts, statues, equestrian statues, and panels carved or cast in low relief. Others are two-dimensional bronze or tile plaques. Some artworks do double-duty as fountains, or as part of fountains; some serve as memorials dedicated to a cause, to notable individuals, and in one case, to a notable animal. Most were donated by individuals or civic organizations; only a few were funded by the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Monument to the U.S. Constitution</span>

The National Monument to the U.S. Constitution is a monument commissioned of Australian artist Brett-Livingstone Strong by Warren E. Burger, Chairman of the Commission on the Bicentennial of the United States Constitution, to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution. One of a pair created by Strong to commemorate historic anniversaries, along with The United States Presidency Monument, it was dedicated by President Ronald Reagan at Independence Hall in Philadelphia on September 17, 1987. Both monuments are the property of the EventMakers-USA, Inc., a Virginia-based company with principal offices in Henrico, Virginia. Over the years the monument has been transported for display purposes to several major public events around the country. In 1991 it was scheduled to begin a twenty-city traveling exposition as part of the Spirit of Freedom Tour. Due to the withdrawal of sponsorship funding, the tour never commenced. The Monument's companion original replicas of the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights are being produced for placement in America's schools through the National Constitution Plaque Initiative. All user rights to the Constitution Monument and the Original Replicas of the Constitution were transferred to The American Constitution Spirit Foundation, a Virginia non-profit, in March 2010. The Foundation plans to place the monument at the new Spirit of Freedom Center in Henrico County Virginia in the summer of 2021.

<i>The Puritan</i> (statue) Bronze statue by Augustus St. Gaudens

The Puritan is a bronze statue by sculptor Augustus St. Gaudens in Springfield, Massachusetts, which became so popular it was reproduced for over 20 other cities, museums, universities, and private collectors around the world, and later became an official symbol of the city, emblazoned on its municipal flag. Originally designed to be part of Stearns Square, since 1899 the statue has stood at the corner of Chestnut and State Street next to The Quadrangle.

Charles d’Orville Pilkington Jackson RSA, FRBS, FRSA was a British sculptor prominent in Scotland in the 20th century. Throughout his career he worked closely with the architect Sir Robert Lorimer. He is most noteworthy for his creation of one of Scotland's most iconic landmarks, the statue of Robert the Bruce at Bannockburn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Michael Jackson (Fulham F.C.)</span> Statue at Craven Cottage, London, from 2011 to 2013

A plaster and resin sculpture of Michael Jackson stood outside Craven Cottage in Fulham, London, the ground of Fulham Football Club, from 2011 until 2013. Commissioned by the club's chairman Mohamed Al-Fayed, it was removed by his successor Shahid Khan. From 2014 to 2019 the statue was on display at the National Football Museum in Manchester.

<i>Seventh Regiment Memorial</i> Memorial and sculpture in Manhattan, New York, U.S.

Seventh Regiment Memorial is an outdoor bronze sculpture atop a granite base honoring those members of the regiment who died during the Civil War. The sculptor John Quincy Adams Ward created the statue and the architect Richard Morris Hunt designed the base. Although the statue is dated 1869 the monument was not unveiled until June 22, 1874.

<i>A Conversation with Oscar Wilde</i> Memorial sculpture in London by Maggi Hambling

A Conversation with Oscar Wilde is an outdoor sculpture by Maggi Hambling in central London dedicated to Oscar Wilde. Unveiled in 1998, it takes the form of a bench-like green granite sarcophagus, with a bust of Wilde emerging from the upper end, with a hand clasping a cigarette.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Todd Gray (artist)</span> American artist

Todd Gray works in photography, performance and sculpture as a contemporary artist who lives and works in Los Angeles, California and Akwidaa, Ghana.

Harry Andrew Jackson, born Harry Aaron Shapiro Jr., was an American artist. He began his career as a Marine combat artist, then later worked in the abstract expressionist, realist, and American western styles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roger Noble Burnham</span> American sculptor (1876–1962)

Roger Noble Burnham was an American sculptor and teacher. He is best remembered for creating The Trojan (1930), the unofficial mascot of the University of Southern California.

Branly Cadet is an American sculptor who is trained in the classical tradition of both figurative and portrait sculpture.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Sanchez, Jesus (23 May 2000). "Faith in Angel Monument Teeters Off Its Pedestal". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Wells, Rachel (6 July 2009). "Rare Jackson portrait finds Harlem home". CNN . Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  3. Ouroussoff, Nicolai (24 October 1999). "Picture This on Downtown's Doorstep". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  4. 1 2 Boehm, Mike (15 January 2005). "Sculptor files for bankruptcy". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  5. "13 Ton Boulder Carved into John Wayne's Head, Lubbock, Texas". Roadside America. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  6. 1 2 Voland, John (27 December 1988). "Pop & Rock". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  7. 1 2 Weiner, David (3 September 2009). "Brett-Livingstone Strong's Rare Portrait of Michael Jackson May Be Up For Sale (PHOTOS)". The Huffington Post . Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  8. "Sir Brett-Livingstone Strong". AskART. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  9. Morgan, Piers (host); Jackson, Katherine (guest); Strong, sir Brett-Livingstone Strong (14 May 2012). "Katherine Jackson and Sir Brett-Livingstone Strong on Piers Morgan Tonight". Piers Morgan Tonight . Season 2. CNN. Transcript.
  10. "Constitution Monument to Be Unveiled Friday". Los Angeles Times . 11 March 2003. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  11. "Fleetwood Mac – Tango in the Night (CD, Album)". Discogs . Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  12. Murphy, Damien; Dunn, Emily (12 October 2009). "A big week for Liza Minnelli". The Sydney Morning Herald . Retrieved 25 May 2013.