Search ALL sculptures and paintings Login My List - 0 Help
	Search Images   Search   About

Keyword Search History All Catalogs

Search:  General KeywordArtist KeywordSubject Keyword       Refine Search     Return to results > You are only searching: Art Inventories

More Smithsonian Searches     Who else has...     Kemeys, Edward,     American Bronze Company,     Figure male -- Full length     Ethnic -- Indian     Animal -- Deer     Animal -- Cougar     Animal -- Wolf     Architecture -- Other     Landscape -- River     Animal -- Cattle     Outdoor Sculpture -- Illinois -- Champaign     Sculpture

Prayer for Rain, (sculpture). Artist:  Kemeys, Edward, 1843-1907, sculptor. American Bronze Company, founder. Title:  Prayer for Rain, (sculpture). Other Titles:  Johnson Fountain, (sculpture). Dates:  Commissioned 1889. Dedicated May 1, 1899. Rededicated June 26, 1999. Digital Reference:  Medium:  Sculpture: bronze; Reliefs: bronze Base: limestone; Fountain basin: concrete. Dimensions:  Sculpture: approx. H. 6 ft.; Base: approx. H. 8 ft.; Fountain basin: approx. Diam. 25 ft. Description:  In the center of the fountain is a bronze figure of a Native American with his arms raised and his head tilted back as he looks toward the sky. A mountain lion sits on his proper right side; a buck deer stands on his proper left side. The Native American stands atop a hexagonal limestone base adorned with three bronze relief plaques attached on alternating sides. The bronze relief plaques depict a bison drinking from a stream, a Native American encampment, and a wolf in a canyon. On the sides between each bronze relief, the limestone base is carved with the faces of Native Americans. The hexagonal limestone base rests in the center of a circular fountain basin. Subject:  Figure male -- Full length Ethnic -- Indian Animal -- Deer Animal -- Cougar Animal -- Wolf Architecture -- Other -- Campsite Landscape -- River Animal -- Cattle Object Type:  Outdoor Sculpture -- Illinois -- Champaign Sculpture Owner:  Administered by Champaign Park District, 706 Kenwood Road, Champaign, Illinois 61821 Located West Side Park, University Avenue & State Street, Champaign, Illinois Remarks:  The executors of Benjamin F. Johnson's estate commissioned the fountain in 1898. Edward Kemeys was selected as the artist to fulfill Johnson's bequest for a fountain that would benefit the people of Champaign, especially the people of labor. Originally, there were underwater lights that changed colors every few minutes, but they were removed eight years later. Sometime between 1930 and 1945, the fountain was shut off due to operating expenses, but the fountain was reactivated in 1960 after the plumbing system had been redesigned so that water was recirculated. A bronze plaque on the fountain railing reads: Edward Kemeys/American Bronze Foundry Co., Chicago, Il/The Prayer for Rain/(text of prayer/signature of artist).For additional information see articles in the News-Gazette, Aug. 16, 1996, pg. B1; Aug. 8, 1998; and June 27, 1999, which detail restoration of the fountain. References:  Index of American Sculpture, University of Delaware, 1985 Save Outdoor Sculpture, Illinois survey, 1993. SOS Assessment Award, 1997. Inventory staff, 2000. Illustration:  Image on file. 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 77002187   Copy/Holding information Smithsonian AmericanArt Museum Control Number   Inventory of American Sculpture 77002187 Add Copy to MyList Format: HTMLPlain textDelimited Subject:   Email to:

Horizon Information Portal 3.25_9382

About | © 2020 Smithsonian | Terms of Use | Privacy | Contact