The morning bike ride along the Schuylkill River Trail included a
detour down the Franklin Parkway and back to the Art Museum. The area is
rich in outdoor sculpture. What follows is just a sampling.
In
the park across from the Franklin Institute is Pennsylvania's "All Wars
Memorial to Colored Soldiers and Sailors" (J. Otto Schweizer, 1927),
which was moved from an obscure location in Fairmont Park to this
prominent position in 1994. Six soldiers and sailors are grouped around a
figure of justice beneath a symbolic Torch of Life that is guarded by
American eagles.
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All Wars Memorial to Colored Soldiers and Sailors |
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All Wars Memorial ... (detail) |
Nearby, in the middle of Logan Circle, in the
Fountain of the Three Rivers" (aka, Swann Fountain)by Alexander Stirling
Calder, 1920. I posted photos of the fountain on February 26. Now in
mid-summer, the water is turned on, and the fountain acquires an ever
changing characters as sun mixes with the water and mist. In the first
photo, immediately behind the central column of water, is the tower of
city hall.
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Fountain of the Three Rivers |
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Fountain of the Three Rivers - detail - Delaware River |
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Fountain of the Three Rivers - detail |
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Fountain of the Three Rivers |
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Fountain of the Three Rivers - detail - Schuylkill River |
Returning north along Franklin Boulevard, is the
Rodin Museum, in front of which Auguste Rodin's "The Thinker"
perpetually ponders the mysteries of life.
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"The Thinker," |
The road which continues around the side of the
Museum is Kelly Drive. Easily overlooked along the way is "Silenus with
the Infant Bacchus." The original by Praxiteles, 4th cen BCE is in the
Louvre. This casting was made in 1895 and purchased by the Fairmount
Park Art Association.
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"Silenus and the Infant Bacchus" |
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"Silenus and the Infant Bacchus" - detail. |
At Kelly Drive and Sedgely Drive in the "Abraham Lincoln Memorial" by Randolph Ragers, 1871.
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"Abraham Lincoln Memorial" |
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"Abraham Lincoln Memorial" - detail |