Eternal Silence (sculpture)
Encyclopedia
Eternal Silence, alternatively known as the Dexter Graves Monument or the Statue of Death, is a monument in Chicago's
Graceland Cemetery
. It is a bronze sculpture set on and backdropped by black granite. It was created by American sculptor Lorado Taft
in 1909.
to Dexter Graves, who led a group of thirteen families who moved to Chicago from Ohio in 1831. He died in 1844, and the monument was commissioned from sculptor Lorado Taft in 1909 by Graves' son Henry Graves. In Ada Bartlett Taft's 1946 Lorado Taft; Sculptor and Citizen, it was listed as one of his most important works. Images of Eternal Silence have been used in other artworks, including works by Claes Oldenburg
. One folktale
claims that if an unsuspecting viewer were to look into the eyes of Eternal Silence's hooded figure, the viewer would be shown a vision of his or her own death.
figure, based on traditional depictions of the Grim Reaper, is set against a black granite base and stands ten feet tall upon that base. The black granite provides contrast for the bronze statue, which is heavily-oxidized because of its age. The hooded figure was influenced by Taft's own "ideas on death and silence". Historically speaking, the figure in Eternal Silence is related to the sculpted funeral procession around the tomb of Philip the Bold in Dijon, France and the Adams Memorial by Augustus Saint-Gaudens
in Washington, D.C. The statue is considered famous and has been noted as Graceland Cemetery's most "unforgettable" monument. The monument was designed by Taft and cast by Jules Bercham. On its base, Taft inscribed the north side with his signature; the south side is inscribed with Am. Art Bronze Foundry J. Bercham -Chicago-. The monument falls within Art Nouveau style
.
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
Graceland Cemetery
Graceland Cemetery
Graceland Cemetery is a large Victorian era cemetery located in the north side community area of Uptown, in the city of Chicago, Illinois, USA. Established in 1860, its main entrance is at the intersection of Clark Street and Irving Park Road...
. It is a bronze sculpture set on and backdropped by black granite. It was created by American sculptor 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:...
in 1909.
History
Eternal Silence is a monument in Graceland CemeteryGraceland Cemetery
Graceland Cemetery is a large Victorian era cemetery located in the north side community area of Uptown, in the city of Chicago, Illinois, USA. Established in 1860, its main entrance is at the intersection of Clark Street and Irving Park Road...
to Dexter Graves, who led a group of thirteen families who moved to Chicago from Ohio in 1831. He died in 1844, and the monument was commissioned from sculptor Lorado Taft in 1909 by Graves' son Henry Graves. In Ada Bartlett Taft's 1946 Lorado Taft; Sculptor and Citizen, it was listed as one of his most important works. Images of Eternal Silence have been used in other artworks, including works by Claes Oldenburg
Claes Oldenburg
Claes Oldenburg is a Swedish sculptor, best known for his public art installations typically featuring very large replicas of everyday objects...
. One folktale
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
claims that if an unsuspecting viewer were to look into the eyes of Eternal Silence's hooded figure, the viewer would be shown a vision of his or her own death.
Design
Eternal Silence has been called "eerie", "somber", "grim-looking", "mysterious", and "haunting". The bronzeBronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
figure, based on traditional depictions of the Grim Reaper, is set against a black granite base and stands ten feet tall upon that base. The black granite provides contrast for the bronze statue, which is heavily-oxidized because of its age. The hooded figure was influenced by Taft's own "ideas on death and silence". Historically speaking, the figure in Eternal Silence is related to the sculpted funeral procession around the tomb of Philip the Bold in Dijon, France and the Adams Memorial by Augustus Saint-Gaudens
Augustus Saint-Gaudens
Augustus Saint-Gaudens was the Irish-born American sculptor of the Beaux-Arts generation who most embodied the ideals of the "American Renaissance"...
in Washington, D.C. The statue is considered famous and has been noted as Graceland Cemetery's most "unforgettable" monument. The monument was designed by Taft and cast by Jules Bercham. On its base, Taft inscribed the north side with his signature; the south side is inscribed with Am. Art Bronze Foundry J. Bercham -Chicago-. The monument falls within Art Nouveau style
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...
.
See also
- Black Hawk StatueBlack Hawk StatueThe Black Hawk Statue, or The Eternal Indian, is a sculpture by Lorado Taft located in Lowden State Park which is near the city of Oregon, Illinois. The statue is perched over the Rock River on a 77 foot bluff overlooking the city.-History:...
- The CrusaderThe Crusader (sculpture)The Crusader, also known as the Victor Lawson Monument, is a memorial marking the grave of Chicago newspaper publisher Victor Lawson. It is in Chicago's historic Graceland Cemetery and was designed by American sculptor Lorado Taft in 1931.-History:...
- Fountain of TimeFountain of TimeFountain of Time, or simply Time, is a sculpture by Lorado Taft, measuring in length, situated at the western edge of the Midway Plaisance within Washington Park in Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. This location is in the Washington Park community area on Chicago's South Side...