Frederick Hart (sculptor)
| Frederick Hart | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Frederick Elliott Hart June 7, 1943 Atlanta, Georgia |
| Died | August 13, 1999 (aged 56) Baltimore, Maryland |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | 1967 apprenticeship, Washington National Cathedral |
| Known for | Sculpture |
| Notable work | The Creation, Washington National Cathedral |
| Movement | Realism (visual arts) |
| Awards | National Medal of Arts 2004; Presidential Award for Design Excellence, Vietnam Memorial 1988; Gold Line Congressional Tribute 1999; Henry Hering Award, National Sculpture Society 1987 |
Frederick Elliott Hart (June 7, 1943 in Atlanta, Georgia – August 13, 1999 in Baltimore, Maryland) was an American sculptor whose work recalls the figurative tradition of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Hart studied at the University of South Carolina, the Corcoran School of Art, and American University without receiving a degree. A convert to Catholicism, Hart's work often conveys sensuousness joined with religiosity. In his later career, he created female nudes from cast acrylic resin in a process that he patented.
Hart was born in Atlanta, Georgia to Joanna Elliott (an unsuccessful actress) and Frederick William Hart, who served in the United States Navy during World War II. His older brother, Frederick William, died as an infant. The Hart family was Presbyterian. His mother contracted scarlet fever and died in 1945 when Frederick was two; he was sent to live with his maternal grandmother and aunt in South Carolina. His father married Myrtis Mildred Hailey in 1947 after being discharged by the Navy, and the family returned to Atlanta, where his father worked as a newspaper reporter. Half-sister Chesley Hart was born in 1949 and brother and sister became close. The Hart family moved to Virginia, near Washington, D.C., in 1956. Young Hart loved to read but had no interest in school. After failing ninth grade, he was sent to South Carolina to live with his Aunt Essie and repeat the year. The principal challenged him to take the A.C.T. to show how little he knew. After achieving a near-perfect score, the principal helped the sixteen-year-old Hart apply and gain admission to the University of South Carolina in 1959. After a short time at South Carolina, Hart participated in a 1961 protest during the Civil Rights Movement with black students. He was arrested, jailed, and kicked out of school. When informed that the Ku Klux Klan was looking for him, he moved to Washington, D.C. In 1965, his sister Chesley was diagnosed with leukemia, and she died the next year. While grieving for his sister, Hart "stumble[d] into a sculpture class at the Corcoran School of Art and [was] blown away."
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