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Lorado Zadoc Taft (April 29, 1860 – October 30, 1936) 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.〔( "Mr. Lorado Taft Dies; Leading Sculptor; Creator of Some of Country's Outstanding Monuments is Stricken at 76; Was Teacher in Chicago; ''Fountain of Time'' and ''Columbus Memorial'' in Washington Among Chief Works," ) ''New York Times.'' October 31, 1936.〕 ==Early years and education== After being homeschooled by his parents, Taft earned his bachelor's degree (1879) and master's degree (1880) from the Illinois Industrial University (later renamed the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) where his father was a professor of geology.〔Taft's association with the University is commemorated by a street named in his honor.〕 The same year he left for Paris to study sculpture, yet maintained his connections with the university for the rest of his life. In 1929, he dedicated his sculpture of ''Alma Mater'' on the University of Illinois campus. Taft envisioned his ''Alma Mater'' as a benign and magnificent woman, about fourteen feet high and dressed in classical draperies, rising from a throne and advancing a step forward with outstretched arms in a gesture of generous greeting to her children. Two figures behind her on either side represent the university’s motto, Learning and Labor.〔Allen Weller, ''Lorado Taft: The Chicago Years'', Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2014, 197-8.〕 In Paris, Taft attended the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts from 1880 to 1883, where he studied with Augustin Dumont, Jean-Marie Bonnassieux and Jules Thomas. His record there was outstanding; he was cited as "top man" in his studio and twice exhibited at the Salon. Upon returning to the United States in 1886, he settled in Chicago. He taught at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, a job he would hold until 1929. In addition to work in clay and plaster, Taft taught his students marble carving, and had them work on group projects. He also lectured at the University of Chicago and the University of Illinois.〔Blanche Higgins Schroer, ''Landmark Review Project: Lorado Taft Midway Studios'', National Park Service, 1965.〕 In 1892, while the art community of Chicago was preparing for the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893, chief architect Daniel Burnham expressed concern to Taft that the sculptural adornments to the buildings might not be finished on time. Taft asked if he could employ some of his female students as assistants (it was not socially accepted for women to work as sculptors at that time) for the Horticultural Building. Burnham responded, "Hire anyone, even white rabbits if they'll do the work." From that arose a group of talented women sculptors known as "the White Rabbits": Enid Yandell, Carol Brooks MacNeil, Bessie Potter Vonnoh, Janet Scudder, and Julia Bracken. Later, another former student, Frances Loring, noted that Taft used his students' talents to further his own career, a not uncommon situation. In general, history has given Taft credit for helping to advance the status of women as sculptors. In 1898, Taft was a founding member of the Eagle's Nest Art Colony in the small town of Oregon, Illinois. Taft designed the Columbus Fountain at Union Station in Washington, D.C., in collaboration with Daniel Burnham. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Lorado Taft」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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