Alexander Milne Calder

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Alexander Milne Calder
Calder in 1894 with the head of William Penn statue that sits atop Philadelphia City Hall
Born(1846-08-23)August 23, 1846
Aberdeen, Scotland
DiedJune 14, 1923(1923-06-14) (aged 76)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Resting placeWest Laurel Hill Cemetery, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, U.S.
EducationPennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts
Known forSculpture
SpouseMargaret Stirling[1]

Alexander Milne Calder (August 23, 1846 – June 14, 1923) (MILL-nee) was a Scottish-American sculptor. His works include the Equestrian statue of George Meade in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia. He produced over 250 architectural sculptures over 30 years for the construction of Philadelphia City Hall including the 37-foot statue of William Penn atop the structure. His son, Alexander Stirling Calder, and grandson Alexander Calder were also sculptors.

Early life and education

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Calder was born on August 23, 1846,[2] in Aberdeen, Scotland, and first learned to carve stone from his father, a tombstone carver.[1] He attended the Royal Academy in Edinburgh and studied with sculptor John Rhind. He traveled to Paris and London where he studied at the South Kensington School and worked on the Albert Memorial. In 1868, he emigrated to the United States and settled in Philadelphia, where he studied with Thomas Eakins at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.[3]

Career

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In 1872, he was hired by architect John McArthur Jr., to produce models for the sculptures adorning Philadelphia City Hall.[4] The commission required more than 250 marble and bronze pieces over the 30 year construction.[5] That same year, Calder was commissioned by the forerunner of Philadelphia's current Association for Public Art, the Fairmount Park Art Association, to create an equestrian statue of Major General George Gordon Meade which was installed in 1887.[6]

In 1875, he won the competition to create the bronze statue of William Penn for the new City Hall. In 1877, Calder used one of the offices in city hall as his studio and worked there through the construction period.[7] The statue is 37 feet tall,[8] and weighs over 53,000 pounds.[9] Calder originally made a clay model nine-feet tall and kept enlarging it until it reached 37 feet tall. The sculpture sat unfinished for 2 years until the Tacony Iron and Metal Works opened in 1889 with the capacity to cast the statue. The statue was cast in 1892[9] and originally displayed in the courtyard of city hall for a year until it was installed in 14 separate pieces atop the tower. The statue was dedicated on November 18, 1894.[8] The sculpture of Penn is the largest atop any building in the world.[10][11][12] Calder was frustrated that the statue was installed facing northeast toward Penn Treaty Park[8] rather than south as he wanted. This positioning results in the statue face being in shadow except in early morning light.[13] Philadelphia City Hall also contains 250 relief and free-standing statues from Calder[14] and his assistant James G. C. Hamilton.[15]

Calder died on June 14, 1923,[2] at his home in Philadelphia[6] and was interred at West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania.[16]

Legacy

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A historical plaque at Philadelphia City Hall highlights Calder's work on the building.[17] His son, Alexander Stirling Calder, and grandson Alexander Calder were also sculptors.[5] Works from Alexander Milne Calder will be displayed at a new museum under construction for his grandson's work in Philadelphia.[18]

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References

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Citations

  1. ^ a b Perl, Jed (2017). Calder: The Conquest of Time - The Early Years: 1898-1940. Knopf. p. 14.
  2. ^ a b Marquis, Albert Nelson (1924). Who's Who In America. Chicago: A. N. Marquis & Company. p. 621. Retrieved August 25, 2025.
  3. ^ Craven 1968, p. 484.
  4. ^ Craven 1968, pp. 484–485.
  5. ^ a b Perloff, Susie. "Generations of Alexander Calder art a trinity of blessings for Philadelphia". whyy.org. WHYY. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
  6. ^ a b "Three Generations of Calders in Philadelphia". www.associationforpublicart.org. Association for Public Art. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  7. ^ Craven 1968, p. 485.
  8. ^ a b c Hornblum & Holmes 2003, p. 63.
  9. ^ a b Salisbury, Stephan. "Where to find 10 extraordinary artworks by the Calder family on display in Philadelphia". www.inquirer.com. The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
  10. ^ Fodor's - Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Dutch Country: With Buck's County, Hershey and Valley Forge. Fodor's Travel Publications. 1996. p. 51. ISBN 9780679030584. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
  11. ^ Hornblum & Holmes 2003, p. 8.
  12. ^ DK Travel, DK Eyewitness Travel Guide to Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Dutch Country, Westminster: Penguin Random House, 2017, 74-5.
  13. ^ Nash, Gary B. (2002). First City - Philadelphia and the Forging of Historical Memory. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. p. 302. ISBN 978-0-8122-1942-5. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  14. ^ Gillette, Howard, Jr. "City Hall (Philadelphia)". philadelphiaencyclopedia.org. The Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia. Retrieved August 20, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ^ Hornblum & Holmes 2003, p. 94.
  16. ^ "Alexander Milne Calder". remembermyjourney.com. webCemeteries. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  17. ^ "Alexander Milne Calder Sculptor 1846-1923". www.hmdb.org. The Historical Marker Database. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  18. ^ Salisbury, Stephan; Dobrin, Peter. "Alexander Calder will finally get a prime museum site on the Parkway, across from Barnes and Rodin". www.inquirer.com. The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
  19. ^ Rhoads, Loren (2024). 222 Cemeteries to See Before You Die. Workman Publishing Company. ISBN 9780762488476. Retrieved August 25, 2025.

Sources

Additional reading

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