- James E. Kelly (artist)
Infobox Artist
bgcolour = #6495ED
name = James E. Kelly
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caption = Engraving by Kelly ofGeorge G. Meade and the Council of War at Gettysburg, July 2, 1863
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birthdate = birth date |1855|7|30|
location =New York City
deathdate = death date and age |1933|5|25|1855|7|30|
deathplace =
nationality = American
field =Sculpture ,Illustrator
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awards =James Edward Kelly (
July 30 1855 –May 25 1933 ) was an Americansculptor andillustrator who specialized in depicting people and events of American wars, particularly theAmerican Civil War .Kelly was born in
New York City . He was a boy of six years old when the Civil War started. Perhaps because of that he early developed a lifelong interest in American history, particularly in the Civil War and in the generals who fought it. His intense studies into history allowed Kelly to bring to his work a degree of detail that makes his drawings and statues noteworthy.When he was commissioned to execute the five panels that make up a large part of the
Battle of Monmouth monument he had a difficult time finding models who did not have mustaches or beards—they being worn by most men of that era—so he prevailed upon a friend of his from nearbyMenlo Park, New Jersey , to pose for him. Because of that, a 30-year-oldThomas Alva Edison 's portrait can be found on the monument.His public memorial sculptures include:
* Soldiers & Sailors Monument,Troy, New York , 1890
* Monmouth Battle Monument, Monmouth, New Jersey, 1884
* Civil War Soldiers & Sailors Monument,Yonkers, New York , 1891
* GeneralJohn Buford Memorial,Gettysburg, Pennsylvania , 1895
* GeneralFitz-John Porter , Haven Park,Portsmouth, New Hampshire , 1904
* Major GeneralJames J. Wilson ,United States Military Academy ,West Point, New York , 1909
* Memorial to the Defendants of New Haven,New Haven, Connecticut , 1911
*Caesar Rodney Equestrian Statue, Rodney Square,Wilmington, Delaware , 1922
* Commander Edward M. Hughes,United States Naval Academy ,Annapolis, Maryland ,
* GeneralGeorge Washington atValley Forge , Federal Hall, New York City
* GeneralHoratio G. Wright .Arlington National Cemetery ,Arlington, Virginia
* Bust of GeneralOliver Otis Howard ,Howard University ,Washington, D.C. Kelly was also known for his extremely detailed and accurate engravings on historical subjects, often commissioned by magazines. His work has recently been highlighted by the book "Generals in Bronze" by William Styple, in which Kelly's sometimes-provocative interviews with generals as he sculpted them were compiled and published for the first time in 2005.
Kelly died in New York City and is buried in an unmarked grave in St. Raymond's Cemetery in the
Bronx, New York .On
October 1 ,2006 , a black granite monument with Kelly's image carved into it and the words, "A Sculptor of American History" was placed over the artist's previously unmarked grave. Funds for the monument were raised by William B. Styple, editor of "Generals in Bronze" (2005), a collection of interviews the artist conducted with generals and other Civil War soldiers.References
* Hawthorne, Frederick W., "Gettysburg: Stories of Men and Monuments", Association of Licenced Battlefield Guides, Hanover, Pennsylvania, 1988.
* Opitz, Glenn B , Editor," Mantle Fielding’s Dictionary of American Painters, Sculptors & Engravers", Apollo Book, Poughkeepsie NY, 1986.
* Styple, William B., "Generals in Bronze: Interviewing the Commanders of the Civil War", Belle Grove Publishing, 2005, ISBN 1-883926-18-1.
* Whittemore, Francis Davis. "George Washington in Sculpture", Marshall Jones Company, Boston, 1933.
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