The Madonna of the Schools, (sculpture).

The Madonna of the Schools, (sculpture).

Petersen, Christian, 1885-1961, sculptor.

Netcott, Glenn, contractor.

Netcott, Ralph, contractor.

The Madonna of the Schools, (sculpture).

Dedicated Fall 1946.

Sculpture: terra cotta; Base: brick.

Approx. 5 ft. 9 in. x 2.5 ft. x 2 ft.

Full-length figure of Mary holding the infant Christ stands on a tiered base with a wall. Two boys in contemporary dress are on the left and a girl knees on the right. All are looking at Mary.

Religion -- New Testament -- Mary

Religion -- New Testament -- Christ

Outdoor Sculpture -- Iowa -- Ames

St. Cecila School, 2900 Hoover Street, Playground, Ames, Iowa 50010

Commissioned by St. Cecilia parish for the school, where the artist's daughter was a student. Ralph and Glenn Netcott did the masonry work. The sculpture was vandalized in the 1970s when one of the boy's arms was stolen. It was later recovered and repaired. IAS files contain excerpts from the books "Christian Petersen Remembered," by Patricia L. Bliss (Ames: Iowa State University Press, 1986) and "Christian Petersen, Sculptor," by Geraldine Wilson, (Ames: Iowa State University Press, 1962).

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Iowa survey, 1996.

Wilson, Geraldine, "Christian Petersen, Sculptor," Ames: Iowa State University Press, 1962.

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.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

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