Coal Miner (statue)
Encyclopedia
The Coal Miner, is a public artwork by American
artist John J. Szaton (1907–1966), located on the West lawn of the Indiana Statehouse or Capitol building, which is in Indianapolis
, Indiana
, United States
. This statue is a copy of a work by Szaton originally commissioned by the Illinois state government in 1963. The statue commemorates Indiana's hard working coal miners and those who lost their lives in the state's industrial history. It stands over 7 feet tall on a 3 foot tall granite base which is supported by a cement foundation 4-6 inches thick. The statue is cast bronze it was first sculpted in plaster and was later cast twice, once to create the Illinois statue which was dedicated in 1964 and later the Indiana statue which was dedicated in 1967, both were created at the Spampinato Art Workshop foundry in Chicago, Ill.
stance with his proper left foot forward. He carries a miner's fire safety lamp or "bug light", in his proper left hand which is by his side. His proper right hand is raised, gripping the base of a miner's pick axe which sits on his proper right shoulder. The sleeve of his proper right arm is unbuttoned and hangs open on his forearm below where he is gripping the pick axe. The belt which hangs at his waist has three visible belt punches. He wears a MSA Comfo Cap Model P miner's hat with its battery pack clipped to the backside of his belt. The artist's signature, "John Szaton, Sc." appears on the proper left side of the base toward the front. Beside the signature toward the back of the proper left side of the base is a foundry mark which reads, "Cast by Spampinato Art Foundry Chicago, Ill. 1966".
The granite base is 35 7/8 x 35 1/2 x 36 in. On the front-facing side it has a bas-relief sculpture of a drag-line mining crane at work in a strip mine. On the rear-facing side it has a plaque which reads: Without coal the marvelous social and industrial progress which marks our civilization could not have been achieved. But the production of this vital commodity, so essential to the world's progress, has cost the lives of thousands of "coal miners" in Indiana. It is to the supreme sacrifice of these men that this memorial is dedicated. This granite block is supported by a cement foundation which is between 4 to 6 in. thick.
, who was ill and unable to attend. The statue was so well received that the State of Indiana commissioned a copy of the sculpture, the 1965 General Assembly appropriated funds to create a copy to memorialize Hoosier coal miners who had been killed on the job. The Indiana statue was erected and dedicated in 1967. As with the Illinois sculpture it is a public artwork and it is owned by the state. The Coal Miner is administered by the State of Indiana, Department of Administration.
. He apprenticed under well known Illinois sculpture Lorado Taft
who invited Szaton to come to Chicago after meeting him on a lecture tour of various high schools and art schools in Massachusetts. Szaton studied at the Art Institute of Chicago
and at the now defunct Chicago Academy of Fine Art while apprenticing under Taft. Szaton worked with other artists including his wife's aunt, Nellie Walker
, who he helped create the Lincoln Trail Monument in Vincennes, IN. He created a War Memorial for Northwest Armory in Chicago in 1940 and 1947 he created "Indian Shooting the Stars" for Lane Tech High School to commemorate students that had died in World War II. Szaton and his family moved to Tinley Park (then a small rural suburb of Chicago) in 1947. Szaton would commute to Chicago to work during the week as a greeting card engraver, since the income from his art commissions was not enough to sustain his family. In 1948 he build a large garage studio behind the house, with a tall, vaulted ceiling to accommodate the height clearance of some of his larger sculptures.
In 1963 Szaton was asked by artist Vachel Davis to reinterpret his iconic 1946 painting "American Coal Miner" into a permanent monument to coal miners. Szaton's sketch was accepted by the Illinois state legislature and he was asked to create a model of the work for further approval. He submitted an 18 in. version of his sculpture in late 1963 and the final statue was completed and dedicated on October 16, 1964.
John Szaton gained a great deal of acclaim for The Coal Miner, reproductions of small scale versions of the monument have been mass produced, over 200 have been given as gifts by the coal industry over the years. Szaton died in 1966 and was buried in Cedar Park cemetery.
Posthumously a plaque was added in 1981 to the Illinois statue citing Szaton as the artist. Szaton's wife donated the full scale plaster sculpture to the Tinley Park Historical Society in 1986.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist John J. Szaton (1907–1966), located on the West lawn of the Indiana Statehouse or Capitol building, which is in Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. This statue is a copy of a work by Szaton originally commissioned by the Illinois state government in 1963. The statue commemorates Indiana's hard working coal miners and those who lost their lives in the state's industrial history. It stands over 7 feet tall on a 3 foot tall granite base which is supported by a cement foundation 4-6 inches thick. The statue is cast bronze it was first sculpted in plaster and was later cast twice, once to create the Illinois statue which was dedicated in 1964 and later the Indiana statue which was dedicated in 1967, both were created at the Spampinato Art Workshop foundry in Chicago, Ill.
Description
The Coal Miner stands 85 x 26 1/2 x 28 in. facing West in the North West corner of the Indiana Statehouse lawn. He is dressed in bib overalls, boots, a belt, a long sleeve shirt and a miner's hat. He has a contrappostoContrapposto
Contrapposto is an Italian term that means counterpose. It is used in the visual arts to describe a human figure standing with most of its weight on one foot so that its shoulders and arms twist off-axis from the hips and legs. This gives the figure a more dynamic, or alternatively relaxed...
stance with his proper left foot forward. He carries a miner's fire safety lamp or "bug light", in his proper left hand which is by his side. His proper right hand is raised, gripping the base of a miner's pick axe which sits on his proper right shoulder. The sleeve of his proper right arm is unbuttoned and hangs open on his forearm below where he is gripping the pick axe. The belt which hangs at his waist has three visible belt punches. He wears a MSA Comfo Cap Model P miner's hat with its battery pack clipped to the backside of his belt. The artist's signature, "John Szaton, Sc." appears on the proper left side of the base toward the front. Beside the signature toward the back of the proper left side of the base is a foundry mark which reads, "Cast by Spampinato Art Foundry Chicago, Ill. 1966".
The granite base is 35 7/8 x 35 1/2 x 36 in. On the front-facing side it has a bas-relief sculpture of a drag-line mining crane at work in a strip mine. On the rear-facing side it has a plaque which reads: Without coal the marvelous social and industrial progress which marks our civilization could not have been achieved. But the production of this vital commodity, so essential to the world's progress, has cost the lives of thousands of "coal miners" in Indiana. It is to the supreme sacrifice of these men that this memorial is dedicated. This granite block is supported by a cement foundation which is between 4 to 6 in. thick.
Historical information
The Coal Miner statue was originally commissioned in 1963 by the State of Illinois after 15 years of advocacy work by coal miner, artist and poet Vachel Davis(1898–1966). The legislature appropriated $15,000 for the construction and casting of this monument. Vachel Davis who was acquainted with John J. Szaton recommended he submit a sketch for the monument based on Davis' 1946 painting "American Coal Miner". The legislature accepted the initial sketch as well as an 18 in. model Szaton submitted before giving the endorsement for Szaton to create the full scale piece. Szaton created a full scale plaster sculpture in his Tinley Park studio before later casting the statue in bronze for the finished piece. The plaster sculpture is still able to be viewed in the Tinley Park Historical Society Museum. The sculpture was intended to commemorate the Illinois coal miners who were killed in pursuit of the state's coal industry. Michael F. Widman an official of the United Mine Workers of America was present at the October 16, 1964 dedication ceremony for the original sculpture in Springfield, at the Illinois statehouse. The United Mine Workers union commended the state of Illinois for being the first state to honor their coal miners with such a memorial. Widman was NOT the model for the piece but merely standing in for the president of the United Mine Workers, John L. LewisJohn L. Lewis
John Llewellyn Lewis was an American leader of organized labor who served as president of the United Mine Workers of America from 1920 to 1960...
, who was ill and unable to attend. The statue was so well received that the State of Indiana commissioned a copy of the sculpture, the 1965 General Assembly appropriated funds to create a copy to memorialize Hoosier coal miners who had been killed on the job. The Indiana statue was erected and dedicated in 1967. As with the Illinois sculpture it is a public artwork and it is owned by the state. The Coal Miner is administered by the State of Indiana, Department of Administration.
Artist
John J. Szaton was born in 1907 in Ludlow, MassachusettsMassachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. He apprenticed under well known Illinois sculpture Lorado Taft
Lorado Taft
Lorado Zadoc Taft was an American sculptor, writer and educator. Taft was born in Elmwood, Illinois in 1860 and died in his home studio in Chicago in 1936.-Early years and education:...
who invited Szaton to come to Chicago after meeting him on a lecture tour of various high schools and art schools in Massachusetts. Szaton studied at the Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either...
and at the now defunct Chicago Academy of Fine Art while apprenticing under Taft. Szaton worked with other artists including his wife's aunt, Nellie Walker
Nellie Walker
Nellie Verne Walker , was an American sculptor best known for her statue of James Harlan in the National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol, Washington D.C.-Early years:...
, who he helped create the Lincoln Trail Monument in Vincennes, IN. He created a War Memorial for Northwest Armory in Chicago in 1940 and 1947 he created "Indian Shooting the Stars" for Lane Tech High School to commemorate students that had died in World War II. Szaton and his family moved to Tinley Park (then a small rural suburb of Chicago) in 1947. Szaton would commute to Chicago to work during the week as a greeting card engraver, since the income from his art commissions was not enough to sustain his family. In 1948 he build a large garage studio behind the house, with a tall, vaulted ceiling to accommodate the height clearance of some of his larger sculptures.
In 1963 Szaton was asked by artist Vachel Davis to reinterpret his iconic 1946 painting "American Coal Miner" into a permanent monument to coal miners. Szaton's sketch was accepted by the Illinois state legislature and he was asked to create a model of the work for further approval. He submitted an 18 in. version of his sculpture in late 1963 and the final statue was completed and dedicated on October 16, 1964.
John Szaton gained a great deal of acclaim for The Coal Miner, reproductions of small scale versions of the monument have been mass produced, over 200 have been given as gifts by the coal industry over the years. Szaton died in 1966 and was buried in Cedar Park cemetery.
Posthumously a plaque was added in 1981 to the Illinois statue citing Szaton as the artist. Szaton's wife donated the full scale plaster sculpture to the Tinley Park Historical Society in 1986.