Public Art Saint Paul announces
Restored Schiller Sculpture to be
re-dedicated
as The Minnesota Chorale performs Ode
to Joy
Saturday, May 11, 2013
10:00am
Como Park, Saint Paul MN
For 105
years, a sculpture of German literary giant Johann Christoph Friedrich von
Schiller (1759–1805) has presided over the gateway to Como Park. It was commissioned from artist Ignatius
Taschner by St. Paul’s German American community and gifted to the City in
1907. Having braved over a century of Minnesota
winters, this cultural treasure has been completely restored by Public Art
Saint Paul.
The community
is invited to rededicate the sculpture with triumphant fanfare and choral
voices on Saturday, May 11th at 10:00am.
The rededication will be held at the Schiller sculpture site near the
Como Park gateway at Lexington and Eastbrook drive. In case of rain, the program will move
indoors to the Como Park Visitor Center Auditorium.
A
Minnesota Chorale performance of Ode to
Joy from Beethoven’s 9th Symphony will celebrate the sculpture’s
rededication. Saint Paul City
Councilmember Amy Brendmoen will officiate, along with Honorary German Consul
Christa Tiefenbacher Hudson, Saint Paul Parks and Recreation Director Michael
Hahm, and Public Art Saint Paul President Christine Podas-Larson. University
of Minnesota Professor Rick McCormick will speak of Schiller and students of
the Twin Cities German Immersion School will recite a Schiller poem.
Who Was Schiller?
A
playwright, poet and philosopher who is considered one of the most important
literary figures in European history, Friedrich Schiller’s writings promoted
freedom and democracy. Schiller was inspired
by the American and French Revolutions and made the struggle for freedom and
justice one of the main themes of his dramas, poems and philosophical writings.
Schiller’s literary output transitions
from the Age of Enlightenment to the era of Romanticism. In 1792, he was made
an honorary French citizen, along with George Washington. His poem is the "Ode an die Freude"
("Ode to Joy,” 1785), the lyrics of which are in the finale of Beethoven's
“Ninth Symphony.”
The Schiller Sculpture’s History
In 1905, members of Saint Paul’s German-American community, led by
Theodore Hamm, Dr. Justus Ohage and Frederick Weyerhaeuser were determined to
celebrate the famous playwright, poet and philosopher on centennial of his
death and to express their pride and gratitude as immigrants who had found a
home in Saint Paul. With stirring
encouragement from eminent architect Cass Gilbert, the committee to sent Dr.
Ohage to Germany to meet with sculptor, painter and printmaker Ignatius
Taschner. Taschner created a bronze
figure 10 feet tall. Schiller confidently strides forward with his right foot,
grasping papers in his left hand, his right hand on his hip. His long hair is
caught back at the nape of his neck and he is attired in a frock coat, vest,
collared shirt and cravat, knee britches, stockings and buckled shoes. He sits
atop a two-tiered, Vermont-granite pedestal. The sculpture’s dedication on July
7, 1907 was a day of celebration in Saint Paul; 5,000 people gathered to hear
lofty speeches about the life, work and ideals of Schiller.
The Restoration
After 105 years, Schiller needed help! The bronze metal was badly
pitted, unstable and actively deteriorating and the surface streaked with green
and blue copper carbonate corrosion and black, crusty sulfur-based deposits. There was considerable damage to the bronze
self-base. The sculpture accumulated decades worth of graffiti and carving.
In 2012, Public Art Saint Paul engaged conservator Kristin
Cheronis to undertake the sculpture’s restoration. She worked on site at Como Park August
through October, allowing Como Park visitors to monitor Schiller’s progress to
full sculptural health. Cheronis and
her team completed their work in the last warm days of the year and through the
long winter Schiller has awaited
celebration. As spring finally arrives,
the time has come to speak of liberty and sing of joy.
About Public Art Saint Paul
For 25 years, Public Art Saint Paul has been the prime mover in
creating and caring for art in Saint Paul’s civic realm. Public Art Saint Paul
has led efforts to inventory, assess condition of and maintain Saint Paul’s
historic public art, including restoration of Indian Hunter and His Dog by Paul Manship in Cochran Park and The New York Life Eagle by Augustus and
Louis Saint-Gaudens in Summit Lookout Park and it has engaged and trained over
230 stewards who have “adopted” artworks throughout the City.
About the Minnesota Chorale
The Minnesota
Chorale (Kathy Saltzman Romey, conductor) concludes its 40th anniversary season
with two performances of Beethoven's 9th Symphony, featuring Schiller's
"Ode to Joy," with the Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra (William
Schrickel, conductor). Both concerts are
offered free of charge. For more information,
visit mnchorale.org.
Saturday, May
18 at 8 pm, Roseville Lutheran Church 1215 Roselawn Ave. West, Roseville
Sunday, May
19 at 4 pm, Dragseth Auditorium/South View Middle School, 4725 South View Lane,
Edina
Support
The Schiller Restoration project is supported in part by an award
from the National Endowment for the Arts - Art Works; with funds provided by
the State of Minnesota from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund through the Minnesota
Historical Society, by gifts to Public Art Saint Paul’s Stewardship Fund, and
pro-bono contributions. The project was
produced by Public Art Saint Paul in partnership with Saint Paul Parks and
Recreation and its Como Park Zoo and Conservatory and the Honorary Consul of
the Federal Republic of Germany.
Contacts
Christine Podas-Larson, President, Public Art Saint Paul
Michelle Furrer, Campus Manager/Director, Como Park
Zoo and Conservatory
Christa Tiefenbacher-Hudson, Honorary
Counsel of the Federal Republic of Germany
