Columbus Memorial, Chicago 1933 Worlds Fair~ (NBY 416404)

''Christopher Columbus'' is a bronze statue by sculptor Carlo Brioschi. The statue of Christopher Columbus was installed in Chicago's Grant Park, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sov ...

of Illinois. Created by the Milanese-born sculptor and installed in 1933, it was set on an exedra and pedestal designed with the help of architect

Clarence H. Johnston Clarence Howard Johnston Sr. (August 26, 1859 – December 29, 1936) was an American architect who practiced in the US state of Minnesota during the late 1800s and early 1900s. Specializing in domestic, religious, and public architecture, he se ...

. It was removed and put in storage in 2020. In 1933, Chicago celebrated its 100th anniversary with the

Century of Progress A Century of Progress International Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States, from 1933 to 1934. The fair, registered under the Bureau International des Expositio ...

World's Fair. In conjunction with the fair, Chicago's Italian-American community raised funds and donated the statue of the Genoese navigator and explorer Christopher Columbus. It was placed at the south end of Grant Park, near the site of the fair, and located east of S. Columbus Drive and north of E. Roosevelt Road. The bronze, beaux arts statue shows Columbus standing and gesturing into the distance with one hand. In his other hand, he holds a scrolled map at his side. On the sides of the statue's

art deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

pedestal are carved depictions of: one of Columbus' ships, the ''

Santa Maria Santa María is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, in languages such as Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. Santa Maria or Santa María may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * "Santa Maria" (Tatjana song), released 1995 * "Santa Maria ...

''; astronomer and mathematician, Paolo Toscanelli, who plotted the course to the "New World;" the explorer, Amerigo Vespucci; and the seal of the City of Genoa. In the four corners of the pedestal are busts allegorically representing, Faith, Courage, Freedom, and Strength. Despite appearances, Brioschi's son has denied that the figure holding a fasces representing ''Strength'' was a portrait of

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...

.Riedy, James L., ''Chicago Sculpture'', University of Illinois Press, Urbana, Illinois, 1981 p. 204. The statue was vandalized on June 13, 2020 in the ongoing George Floyd protests. After an incident on July 17, 2020, where a number of injuries occurred during a confrontation with police and an attempt to topple the controversial work, the statue was removed by July 24 order of Chicago's Mayor Lori Lightfoot.

References

1933 establishments in Illinois 1933 sculptures Bronze sculptures in Illinois Italian-American culture in Chicago Outdoor sculptures in Chicago Sculptures of men in Illinois Statues in Chicago Maps in art Ships in art Chicago Vandalized works of art in Illinois Statues removed in 2020 {{Authority control

See also

References