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Hartman, Benjamin,
Hartman, Mary,
Figure group
Portrait female -- West, Mae
Portrait female -- Fritchie, Barbara
Portrait female -- Grey, Nellie
Portrait male -- Custer, George Armstrong
Portrait male -- Brown, John
Literature -- Character
Literature -- Character
Literature -- Character
Literature -- Character
Ethnic -- Indian
Allegory -- Life
Religion -- Judaism
Religion -- Old Testament
Religion -- Old Testament
Religion -- Old Testament
Religion -- New Testament
Religion -- New Testament
Religion -- Saint
History -- United States
History -- United States
History -- United States
History -- United States
History -- United States
Architecture -- Civic
Architecture -- Domestic
Architecture -- Religious
Architecture -- Domestic
Architecture -- Castle
Architecture -- Education
Architecture -- Civic
Architecture -- Civic
Architecture -- Detail
Architecture -- Vehicle
Architecture exterior -- Military
Landscape -- Valley
Animal -- Horse
Animal -- Deer
Animal -- Bird
Animal -- Dog
Animal -- Rabbit
Animal -- Lion
Animal -- Cattle
Object -- Other
Architecture -- Boat
Object -- Furniture
Object -- Other
Outdoor Sculpture -- Ohio -- Springfield
Sculpture
(Rock Garden Sculptures), (
sculpture
).
Artist:
Hartman, Benjamin, d. 1944, sculptor.
Hartman, Mary, 1905-1997, assistant.
Title:
(Rock Garden Sculptures), (
sculpture
).
Other Titles:
Hartman Rock Garden, (
sculpture
).
Dates:
1932-1944. Rededicated June 26, 2010.
Digital Reference:
Medium:
Mixed media, stone, poured and molded cement, partially white washed, wood, metal and mirror.
Dimensions:
Rock garden: approx. 35 ft. x 120 ft.
Inscription:
(On wall, behind ox and covered wagon, raised:) MAN
Description:
Sculptures installed on the grounds of the artist's former home include: Enon Mound, Jews journeying to the Promised Land, Valley Forge, Mount Vernon, Death Valley, a church, stone houses and cabins, Easter baskets, loving cups and cradles, and metal figurines and poured cement statuettes. In one area, Barbara Fritchie raises the American flag from her attic window as Stonewall Jackson's Confederate troop march by her Maryland home. There are models of cabins, the Rock of Ages, Daniel in the Lions' Den, the Nativity, doughboys locked into battle in No-Man's Land, the Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe, Peter Pumpkin Eater, Mae West, and Nellie Grey. Another part of the garden includes the Madonna of the Trail, Indians of the Everglades, and the horse Spark Plug, and Barney Google. An ox pulls a covered wagon. There are replicas at the north porch of the White House, Independence Hall, the first public high school in the United States, Noah's Ark, John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry, Custer's Last Stand, and the Hoover Dam. Also included in the garden is a castle modeled after one in West Virginia that stands as tall as a house with a drawbridge, moat, and ramparts. There is also a cathedral with statues of saints lining the roof and niches along the walls. And, there is a column in the north garden's central flower beds which includes an eagle atop an American flag above an anchor. The arms of the anchor support a church and a school. At the base of the anchor is a rabbit warren with a white-washed cement rabbit. Surrounding the base are animals, including horses, deer, and dogs. Lessons are written in rectangular pieces of mirror and round brown stones embedded in the cement walk. A white picket fence made of cement surrounds the garden, and each of the 400 stakes in the fence are individually molded.
Subject:
Figure group
Portrait female
--
West, Mae
Portrait female
--
Fritchie, Barbara
Portrait female
--
Grey, Nellie
Portrait male
--
Custer, George Armstrong
Portrait male
--
Brown, John
Literature
--
Character
--
Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe
Literature
--
Character
--
Spark Plug
Literature
--
Character
--
Peter Pumpkin Eater
Literature
--
Character
--
Barney Google
Ethnic
--
Indian
Allegory
--
Life
--
Womanhood
Religion
--
Judaism
Religion
--
Old Testament
--
Noah
Religion
--
Old Testament
--
Exodus
Religion
--
Old Testament
--
Daniel
Religion
--
New Testament
--
Christ
Religion
--
New Testament
--
Nativity
Religion
--
Saint
History
--
United States
--
Revolution
History
--
United States
--
Westward Expansion
History
--
United States
--
Civil War
History
--
United States
--
World War I
History
--
United States
--
Hoover Dam
Architecture
--
Civic
--
Mount Vernon
Architecture
--
Domestic
--
House
Architecture
--
Religious
--
Church
Architecture
--
Domestic
--
Cottage
Architecture
--
Castle
Architecture
--
Education
Architecture
--
Civic
--
White House
Architecture
--
Civic
--
Independence Hall
Architecture
--
Detail
--
Fence
Architecture
--
Vehicle
--
Wagon
Architecture exterior
--
Military
--
Battlefield
Landscape
--
Valley
--
Desert Valley
Animal
--
Horse
Animal
--
Deer
Animal
--
Bird
--
Eagle
Animal
--
Dog
Animal
--
Rabbit
Animal
--
Lion
Animal
--
Cattle
Object
--
Other
--
Flag
Architecture
--
Boat
--
Detail
Object
--
Furniture
--
Cradle
Object
--
Other
--
Dish
Object Type:
Outdoor
Sculpture
--
Ohio
--
Springfield
Sculpture
Owner:
Administered by Friends of the Hartman Rock Garden,
Springfield
,
Ohio
Located Hartman Rock Garden, 1905 Russell Avenue,
Springfield
,
Ohio
45506
Provenance:
Formerly owned by Hartman, Benjamin & Mary, 1905 Russell Avenue,
Springfield
,
Ohio
45506
Hartman, Benjamin, Jr. & Ruth,
Springfield
,
Ohio
Kohler Foundation, Wisconsin
Remarks:
Title supplied by Inventory cataloger.
The sculptures are located in the garden of the artist's former home. Beginning in 1932, the artist and his wife Mary Hartman gathered stones along the creek and in the fields of what is now the Sunnyland housing development. The sculptures in the north yard area took seven years to complete. The artist then expanded the garden to the south yard area. The castle
sculpture
was built in fourteen days with 10,000 stones. IAS files contain a related article from the
Springfield
News Sun (
Ohio
), Sept. 24, 1990, Community News sect., pg. 1, which details the history of the rock garden sculptures in an interview with the artist's widow.
After the artist's death, his wife Mary continued to maintain the garden sculptures, and after her death, the children Benjamin Jr. and Ruth took over. When restoration became necessary, the children contacted the Kohler Foundation, Inc., a private foundation in Wisconsin with an interest in the preservation of folk art installations. The Kohler Foundation purchased the property and hired specialists to research, document, and perform restoration work on the garden sculptures. The Kohler Foundation then gave the property back to the community, and in 2009, the Friends of the Hartman Rock Garden was formed as a nonprofit organization charged with the continued development and maintenance of the rock garden for the public's enjoyment. The restored Hartman Rock Garden was rededicated on June 26, 2010. IAS files contain a related article from the
Springfield
News Sun, June 23, 2010.
References:
Save
Outdoor
Sculpture
,
Ohio
survey, 1994.
Smith, Richard P., Mrs., 1999, 2010.
Illustration:
Image on file.
Springfield
News Sun, Sept. 24, 1990, pg. 1.
Note:
The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and
Sculpture
database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.
Repository:
Inventories of American Painting and
Sculpture
, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012
Control Number:
IAS OH000464
Copy/Holding information
Smithsonian AmericanArt Museum
Control Number
Inventory of American Sculpture
OH000464
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