Sculpture and plaques: bronze; Exedra: black Norwegian granite
Type:
Sculptures-Exedra
Sculptures-Outdoor Sculpture
Sculptures
Owner/Location:
Administered by City of Pittsburgh Department of Public Works 611 Second Avenue Pittsburgh Pennsylvania 15222
Located Schenley Park Pittsburgh Pennsylvania
Date:
Dedicated Oct. 6, 1930
Notes:
Index of American Sculpture, University of Delaware, 1985
Evert, Marilyn, "Discovering Pittsburgh's Sculpture," Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1983, pg. 193-194.
National Park Service, American Monuments and Outdoor Sculpture Database, PA0205, 1989.
Save Outdoor Sculpture, Pennsylvania survey, 1994.
Image on file.
Evert, Marilyn, "Discovering Pittsburgh's Sculpture," Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1983, pg. 248-249.
(On youth:) D. C. FRENCH SC./1928 / THE GORHAM COMPANY, FOUNDERS (On back of left relief:) DANIEL CHESTER FRENCH, SCULPTURE/H. HORNBOSTEL, ARCHITECT/ERIC FISHER WOOD, ASSOCIATE/MASSANIELLO PICCIRILLI, SCULPTURE/PAUL FJELDE, SCULPTURE/THE GORHAM COMPANY, FOUNDERS/S. M. SIESEL COMPANY, BUILDERS (On back of center relief:) 1846 GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE 1914/THIS MEMORIAL UNVEILED IN HONOR OF (...rest of inscription not transcribed) GUIDANCE OF AMERICAN YOUTH/WESTINGHOUSE MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION/(names of trustees) (Inscriptions on six granite plaques located on the wall beneath each of the six bronze reliefs:) (Right side, first plaque:) THE FIRST/SUBSTITUTION OF/HIGH VOLTAGE ELECTRICITY/FOR OPERATING/A MAIN LINE RAILROAD (second plaque:) STEAM TURBINES BY VAST/POWER IN SMALL SPACE AND/GREAT ECONOMY HAVE/BECOME A BASIC SOURCE OF/UNIVERSAL ELECTRICITY (Third plaque:) NIAGARA WHOSE ENERGY/CONVERTED TO ELECTRICITY/SERVED THE FIRST GREAT/POWER SYSTEM AND CREATED/AN INDUSTRIAL EMPIRE (Left side, first plaque:) CHICAGO EXPOSITION 1893/WHERE WAS FIRST EXHIBITED/IN OPERATION A COMPLETE/ALTERNATING SYSTEM OF/POWER DISTRIBUTION (Second plaque:) THE WESTINGHOUSE AIRBRAKE/IMMEASURABLY INCREASED THE/SPEED SAFETY AND ECONOMY/OF RAILWAY TRANSPORTATION/THROUGHOUT THE WORLD (Third plaque:) MODERN SIGNALING SYSTEMS/WHICH ENABLE SPEED WITH/SAFETY IN TRANSPORTATION/ARE THE RESULTS OF THE VISION OF WESTINGHOUSE
(Wall, center panel below medallion:) GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE/UNION SOLDIER/CITIZEN OF PITTSBURGH/FOUNDER OF THE WESTINGHOUSE INDUSTRIES/BENEFACTOR OF HUMANITY THROUGH HIS LABORS/AND INVENTIONS/1846-1914/ERECTED BY/WESTINGHOUSE MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION/OF 54251 MEMBERS/WHO SERVED WITH HIM IN THE/ARMY OF INDUSTRY (Center panel, bottom front:) FIRST TRIAL EQUIPMENT OF THE WESTINGHOUSE AIR BRAKE 1869 (Left panel, bottom front:) 1869-1069/WESTINGHOUSE AIR BRAKE CENTENNIAL/AMERICAN STANDARD INC./1881-1981/UNION SWITCH & SIGNAL CENTENNIAL/AMERICAN STANDARD INC. signed Founder's mark appears.
The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.
Summary:
A young man, the Spirit of American Youth, dressed in knickers and a sweater, stands holding two books in his proper left hand and his hat in his proper right hand. The youth faces a semicircular exedra containing a bronze medallion with a profile portrait of George Westinghouse. Flanking the medallion are two bronze male figures in high relief. One male figure, a mechanic, is dressed in work overalls and carries a hammer; the other male figure, an engineer, is dressed in a suit and carries a ruler. Beside each figure there is a set of three plaques depicting the inventions and accomplishments of George Westinghouse.
