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Catalog Data

Cast after:
Daniel Chester French, 20 Apr 1850 - 7 Oct 1931  Search this
Foundry:
Henry Bonnard Bronze Co.  Search this
Sitter:
Ralph Waldo Emerson, 25 May 1803 - 27 Apr 1882  Search this
Medium:
Bronze
Dimensions:
57.5 cm (22 5/8" )
Type:
Sculpture
Date:
1879 (cast 1901)
Exhibition Label:
Born Boston, Massachusetts
In 1832, Ralph Waldo Emerson had a crisis of faith and resigned as a Unitarian minister at the Second Church of Boston. Having cast off doctrine, he developed a uniquely American school of philosophy known as transcendentalism. Sensing a divine presence in nature, Emerson asserted that individuals could experience God directly, without the mediation of priest or church, through solitary contemplation of the natural world. In keeping with the democratic ideals of his country, Emerson claimed that salvation was not limited to the select few, but available to all, gained through recognition of the divine power within each individual.
Nacido en Boston, Massachusetts
En 1832, Ralph Waldo Emerson sufrió una crisis de fe y renunció al puesto de pastor de la Segunda Iglesia de Boston, de vertiente unitarista. Desechando la doctrina, desarrolló una escuela de filosofía netamente estadounidense, conocida como trascendentalismo. Emerson sentía una presencia divina en la naturaleza y afirmaba que se podía tener la experiencia de Dios directamente, sin mediación de sacerdotes ni iglesias, a través de la contemplación solitaria del mundo natural. A tono con los ideales democráticos de su país, afirmaba que la salvación no estaba reservada para unos pocos, sino al alcance de todos los que reconocieran el poder divino dentro de cada individuo.
Provenance:
Don Beck [1949-2010], Fort Wayne, Indiana; purchased NPG 1974
Topic:
Ralph Waldo Emerson: Male  Search this
Ralph Waldo Emerson: Literature\Writer\Poet  Search this
Ralph Waldo Emerson: Literature\Writer\Essayist  Search this
Ralph Waldo Emerson: Society and Social Change\Transcendentalist  Search this
Portrait  Search this
Credit Line:
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
Object number:
NPG.74.13
Restrictions & Rights:
CC0
See more items in:
National Portrait Gallery Collection
Exhibition:
Out of Many: Portraits from 1600 to 1900
On View:
NPG, East Gallery 124
Data Source:
National Portrait Gallery
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4c44f5138-5c80-478b-9992-3a2952658402
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:npg_NPG.74.13