Elisabet Ney Studio and Museum | |
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Location | 304 E. 44th St Austin, Texas, United States |
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Coordinates | 30°18′24″N97°43′35″W / 30.30667°N 97.72639°W |
Area | 2.6 acres (1.1 ha) |
Built | 1892 |
Architect | Elisabet Ney |
Architectural style | Classical revival |
NRHP reference No. | 72001374 |
RTHL No. | 13829 |
TSAL No. | 624 |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | November 29, 1972 |
Designated RTHL | 1962 |
Designated TSAL | May 28, 1981 |
The Elisabet Ney Museum is a museum located in Austin, Texas, United States. It is housed in the former studio of sculptor Elisabet Ney and is dedicated to showcasing her life and works. There is a permanent collection of her portrait busts and personal memorabilia on display.
Formosa, as Ney called the studio, was completed in 1893 and enlarged in 1902. It was the earliest art studio built in Texas. After Ney died in 1907, Ella and Joseph B. Dibrell purchased the building to preserve it as an art center in memory of her. [1] The City of Austin assumed ownership of it in 1941 and it is managed through the city's Parks and Recreation Department. In addition to being a local and state historic landmark, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 29, 1972, and is one of the 40 museums in the Historic Artists' Homes and Studios program.
Until 1973 the Ney museum emphasized the exhibition of contemporary art. From July 1980 to November 1982, the museum was closed for restoration and the installation of a climate-control system, after which the museum began to reconstruct the studio as it was used by Ney. In 2007 the museum commissioned a master plan for restoration of the grounds. Part of this plan has been completed, including planting wild flowers and prairie grasses around the building to better resemble the appearance of the grounds in Ney's time. [2] In 2017 the city of Austin announced a planned restoration of the museum's frame, windows, and doors to improve the building's climate control and a restoration of the property's historic wall and gate. [3] Other planned improvements include a new bridge across Waller Creek, which cuts through the Ney property, and the formation of a supporters group, Friends of the Ney. [4] Recently, the museum has again returned to a focus on contemporary art more than Ney and her work, and holds numerous public events and art exhibitions annually.
The museum houses a collection of originals and replicas of Ney's works, along with many of her personal belongings and tools. The more than fifty busts, medallions, and full-sized figures on display include her portraits of European notables such as King Ludwig II of Bavaria, Otto von Bismarck, Giuseppe Garibaldi, and Arthur Schopenhauer as well as Americans William Jennings Bryan, Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin, and General Albert Sidney Johnston. [5]
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Franzisca Bernadina Wilhelmina Elisabeth Ney was a German-American sculptor who spent the first half of her life and career in Europe, producing portraits of famous leaders such as Otto von Bismarck, Giuseppe Garibaldi and King George V of Hanover. At age 39, she immigrated to Texas with her husband, Edmund Montgomery, and became a pioneer in the development of art there. Among her most famous works during her Texas period were life-size marble figures of Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin, commissions for the Texas State Capitol. A large group of her works are housed in the Elisabet Ney Museum, located in her home and studio in Austin. Other works can be found in the United States Capitol, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and numerous collections in Germany.
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Stephen F. Austin is a statue of Stephen F. Austin by Elisabet Ney, originally modeled in 1893 and installed in 1905; it is part of the National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., as one of the two statues from Texas. The other Texas statue, Sam Houston, is also by Ney and was produced in parallel. Another carving of Stephen F. Austin is displayed in the Texas State Capitol, where it was installed in 1903.
Sam Houston is a statue of Sam Houston by Elisabet Ney, originally modeled in 1892 and installed in 1905; it is part of the National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., as one of the two statues from Texas. The other Texas statue, Stephen F. Austin, is also by Ney and was produced in parallel. Another carving of Sam Houston is displayed in the Texas State Capitol, where it was installed in 1903.
Lady Macbeth is a statue of the Shakespearean character Lady Macbeth by German American sculptor Elisabet Ney. The sculpture is a life-size full-length female figure rendered in marble. Completed in 1905, Lady Macbeth is one of Ney's last works and was regarded by the artist as her masterpiece. It is housed in Washington, D.C., in the Luce Foundation Center for American Art at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, which acquired the piece in 1998.
Albert Sidney Johnston is a memorial statue of General Albert Sidney Johnston by German American sculptor Elisabet Ney. The piece is a life-size recumbent male figure rendered in marble sculpture. It depicts the General at the time of his death in the Battle of Shiloh during the American Civil War. Completed in 1903, the piece resides atop Johnston's tomb in the Texas State Cemetery in Austin, Texas, where it was installed in 1905.
Arthur Schopenhauer is a sculpture of German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer by sculptor Elisabet Ney. Completed in 1859, the piece is a portrait bust rendered in marble. The bust was modeled and carved in Germany, but it is now held by the Elisabet Ney Museum in Austin, Texas, United States.
Jacob Grimm is a sculpture of German philologist Jacob Grimm by sculptor Elisabet Ney. Completed in 1858, the piece is a portrait bust rendered in marble. The bust was modeled and carved in Berlin, but it is now held by the Elisabet Ney Museum in Austin, Texas.
Eilhard Mitscherlich is a sculpture of German chemist Eilhard Mitscherlich by sculptor Elisabet Ney. Completed in 1863, the piece is a portrait bust rendered in marble. The marble bust is now held by the Berlin's Natural History Museum, while the original plaster is displayed in Mitscherlich's mausoleum in Berlin's Alter St.-Matthäus-Kirchhof.
Ludwig II is a sculpture of King Ludwig II of Bavaria by sculptor Elisabet Ney. Completed in 1870, the piece is a portrait statue rendered in plaster. The statue was modeled and carved in Germany, but it is now held by the Elisabet Ney Museum in Austin, Texas; a marble version, completed by another sculptor, is installed in the Herrenchiemsee Palace in Bavaria.
Giuseppe Garibaldi is a sculpture of Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi by German sculptor Elisabet Ney. Completed in 1866, the piece is a portrait bust rendered in marble. The portrait was modeled and carved in Italy, but it is now held by the Elisabet Ney Museum in Austin, Texas.
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