Phebe Hemphill | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | April 25, 1960 West Chester, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts |
| Known for | Sculpture |
Phebe Hemphill (born April 25, 1960) is an American sculptor who works for the United States Mint. She has been called "one of the preeminent coin artists, sculptors, and engravers of our time." [1]
Hemphill was born April 25, 1960, in West Chester, Pennsylvania [2] to Dallett Hemphill and Ann Cornwell Hemphill. [3] A number of Phebe Hemphill's family members, including her father and grandfather, were interested in coin and medal collecting. [1] She was directly inspired by her grandfather, Gibbons Gray Cornwell Jr., who did bas-relief sculpture, who in turn was influenced by her great-great aunt, Martha Jackson Cornwell, who worked with Augustus Saint-Gaudens. [4] [2]
Hemphill attended Agnes Irwin School for girls in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, graduating in 1978. [5] Hemphill trained at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, graduating in 1987. She also studied with Evangelos Frudakis. [6] Hemphill includes Jules-Clément Chaplain, Jean-Baptiste Daniel-Dupuis, Oscar Roty, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, and Adolph A. Weinman among her artistic influences. [1]
In 1987, Hemphill joined the Franklin Mint in the sculpture department. She remained there until 2002, working on porcelain and medallic art. From 2002 until 2005 she worked as a staff sculptor at McFarlane Toys, in Bloomingdale, New Jersey. [2]
In 2006, she joined the United States Mint in Philadelphia. [7] [2] She has sculpted many coins and medals for the U.S. Mint, including the 2013 Presidential $1 Coin obverse for William McKinley; [8] the 2011 September 11 National Medal World Trade center obverse; [9] [10] [11] the Monuments men bronze medal; [12] and coin series of Five-Star Generals, [13] First Spouses [14] and Code talkers. [15] [2] United States Mint state quarters including Gettysburg, the Grand Canyon, Mount Hood, and Yosemite are also Hemphill's work. [6]
Hemphill lives in Philadelphia. She frequently visits sites which will be featured in her work, including Shenandoah National Park and the September 11 attack locations. [16] [5] She uses both digital and traditional methods in her work, working with 3-D imaging software as well as creating coin designs on clay blanks the size of dinner plates. [17] [6]
"The best reason to do traditional work now is the ability to see depth perception ... Since we're working in such shallow relief, it's a very important and viable way to do it." [6]
Hemphill's work has been shown by the National Sculpture Society, the American Medallic Sculpture Association, the F.A.N. Gallery in Philadelphia, [15] [6] and West Chester University. [18]
Augustus Saint-Gaudens was an Irish and American sculptor of the Beaux-Arts generation who embodied the ideals of the American Renaissance. Saint-Gaudens was born in Dublin to an Irish-French family, and raised in New York City. He traveled to Europe for further training and artistic study. After he returned to New York City, he achieved major critical success for his monuments commemorating heroes of the American Civil War, many of which still stand. Saint-Gaudens created works such as the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial on Boston Common, Abraham Lincoln: The Man, and grand equestrian monuments to Civil War generals: General John Logan Memorial in Chicago's Grant Park and William Tecumseh Sherman at the corner of New York's Central Park. In addition, he created the popular historicist representation of The Puritan.
The Peace dollar is a United States dollar coin minted for circulation from 1921 to 1928 and 1934 to 1935, and beginning again for collectors in 2021. Designed by Anthony de Francisci, the coin was the result of a competition to find designs emblematic of peace. Its obverse represents the head and neck of the Goddess of Liberty in profile, and the reverse depicts a bald eagle at rest clutching an olive branch, with the legend "Peace". It was the last United States dollar coin to be struck for circulation in silver.
The Sacagawea dollar is a United States dollar coin introduced in 2000, but subsequently minted only for niche circulation from 2002 onward. The coin generally failed to meet consumer and business demands. It is still generally accepted in circulation.
The Saint-Gaudens double eagle is a twenty-dollar gold coin, or double eagle, produced by the United States Mint from 1907 to 1933. The coin is named after its designer, the sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens, who designed the obverse and reverse. It is considered by many to be the most beautiful of U.S. coins.
The Walking Liberty half dollar is a silver 50-cent piece or half dollar coin that was issued by the United States Mint from 1916 to 1947; it was designed by Adolph A. Weinman, a well-known sculptor and engraver.
John F. Flanagan was a sculptor who was widely known for his statuary and plaquettes but recognized foremost for his designs of coinage and commemorative medals. Among his best known designs are the obverse (front) and reverse of the United States quarter dollar featuring the profile of George Washington, a coin that has been in continuous circulation with some modifications since 1932.
The Barber coinage consists of a dime, quarter, and half dollar designed by United States Bureau of the Mint Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber. They were minted between 1892 and 1916, though no half dollars were struck in the final year of the series.
The Washington quarter is the present quarter dollar or 25-cent piece issued by the United States Mint. The coin was first struck in 1932; the original version was designed by sculptor John Flanagan.
Alex Shagin is a coin designer.
Eugene Daub is an American contemporary figure sculptor, best known for his portraits and figurative monument sculpture created in the classic heroic style. His sculptures reside in three of the nation's state capitals and in the National Statuary Hall in the United States Capitol. His work appears in public monuments and permanent collections in the United States and Europe.
Donald Nelson Everhart II is an American coin and medal engraver-medalist, and sculptor who has worked for the private Franklin Mint, as a freelance designer, and since 2004 has worked for the United States Mint in Philadelphia. With over 1,000 models for coins and medals attributed to him as of 2008, he is still at the prime of his career creating the bas-relief models for these and similar sculptural objects. His coin designs are in the pockets of American citizens, and despite his late arrival to the series of the popular U.S. Statehood Quarters, he has designed and modeled three State's unique reverse designs, modeled three others, and six U.S. commemorative coins. His portrait of President William Clinton was chosen for Clinton's second term Inaugural Medal. Among his other medal creations are six Congressional Gold Medals for the U.S. Mint, seven Society of Medalists issues, twelve calendar medals, and other models for private medal makers, as well as cast art medals.
Judith Shea is an American sculptor and artist, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1948. She was awarded a degree in fashion design from the Parsons School of Design in 1969 and earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree there in 1975. This dual education formed the basis for her figure based works.
The Lincoln cent is a one-cent coin that has been struck by the United States Mint since 1909. The obverse or heads side was designed by Victor David Brenner, as was the original reverse, depicting two stalks of wheat. The coin has seen several reverse, or tails, designs and now bears one by Lyndall Bass depicting a Union shield. All coins struck by the United States government with a value of 1⁄100 of a dollar are called cents because the United States has always minted coins using decimals. The penny nickname is a carryover from the coins struck in England, which went to decimals for coins in 1971.
Joseph Francis Menna is an American sculptor and engraver who has worked in both digital and traditional sculpture media. He has been the Chief Engraver of the United States Mint since February, 2019.
Frances Taft Grimes was an American sculptor, best remembered for her bas-relief portraits and busts.
The American Liberty 225th Anniversary gold coin is a one-ounce gold coin minted to commemorate the 225th anniversary of the U.S. Mint. It was released on April 6, 2017. A companion series of one-ounce silver medals bearing the same designs was released on October 6 later that year.
The Apollo 11 50th Anniversary commemorative coins were issued by the United States Mint in 2019 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first crewed landing on the Moon by Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. Consisting of a gold half eagle, two different sizes of silver dollars, and a copper-nickel clad half dollar, each of the four was issued in proof condition, with all but the larger silver dollar also issued in uncirculated. The gold coins were struck at the West Point Mint, the silver at the Philadelphia Mint and the base metal half dollars at the mints in Denver and San Francisco.
Margaret Christian Grigor was a prolific sculptor and medalist, working in metal, wood, stone, plaster and plasteline. Grigor was elected to the National Sculpture Society in 1963. In 1969 she won the Lindsey Morris Prize for best bas-relief from the National Sculpture Society.
The Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial silver dollar is a commemorative coin issued by the United States Mint in 2009.
The British Art Medal Society (BAMS) was founded in 1982 to promote the art of the medal through commissions, exhibitions, publications and events. The society is affiliated to FIDEM.