Erwin Frey (April 21, 1892 – 1967 or 68) was an American sculptor and educator best remembered for his George Armstrong Custer memorial.

Early life

Frey was born in

Lima, Ohio Lima ( ) is a city in Allen County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 35,579. It is located in northwest Ohio along Interstate 75 in Ohio, Interstate 75, appr ...

, where his father, an immigrant former cabinet-maker’s apprentice from Switzerland moved after first settling in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

. He later studied at Lima College for a year then began his sculpture studies with Ohio sculpture

Clement Barnhorn Clement John Barnhorn (1857–1935) was an American sculptor and educator known for his memorials, architectural sculpture, and ecclesiastic and funerary works. Early years Born in Cincinnati, Ohio Barnhorn began his art studies at the Art Acad ...

at the

Cincinnati Art Academy The Art Academy of Cincinnati is a private college of art and design in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was founded as the McMicken School of Design in 1869, and was a department of the University of Cincinnati, and later in 1887, became the Art Academy ...

. While in Cincinnati he worked at the

Rookwood Pottery Company Rookwood Pottery is an American ceramics company that was founded in 1880 and closed in 1967, before being revived in 2004. It was initially located in the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood in Cincinnati, Ohio, and has now returned there. In its heyda ...

. He then moved the New York where he studied at the Beaux Arts Institute of Design and at the

Art Students League The Art Students League of New York is an art school in the American Fine Arts Society in Manhattan, New York City. The Arts Students League is known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may study f ...

with James Earle Fraser. He helped Fraser enlarge his works used at the Panama-Pacific Exposition in 1915. This was followed by a sojourn to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

where he studied at the Julian Academy with

Henri Bouchard Henri Bouchard (13 December 1875 – 30 November 1960), was a French sculptor. His work was part of the sculpture event in the art competition at the 1924 Summer Olympics. Biography The son of a carpenter, Bouchard was born in Dijon. He w ...

and

Paul Landowski Paul Maximilien Landowski (1 June 1875 – 31 March 1961) was a French monument sculptor of Polish descent. His best-known work is '' Christ the Redeemer'' in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Biography Landowski was born in Paris, France, of a Polish re ...

Later life

Frey returned from Paris in 1923 to accept a position at the Columbus Art School Frey was “Sculptor-in-residence” and a professor at

Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...

from 1925 to 1961.

Selected works

* Beatty Memorial, Ferncliff Cemetery,

Springfield, Ohio Springfield is a city in Clark County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located in southwestern Ohio along the Mad River (Ohio), Mad River, Buck Creek, and Beaver Creek, about west of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus and northeast of ...

, 1924 ::William Beatty was an official of the Ohio Pythians for whom Frey was the Grand Keeper of Records and Seal for 31 years. *

Statue A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or Casting (metalworking), cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to ...

William Oxley Thompson William Oxley Thompson, D.D. (November 5, 1855 – December 9, 1933) was the fifth president of Ohio State University. During his term as president, he was known for his practice of segregationist policies against black students on campus ...

, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 1930 * George Armstrong Custer monument in

New Rumley, Ohio New Rumley is an unincorporated community in central Rumley Township, Harrison County, Ohio, United States. It is the birthplace of George Armstrong Custer. The Custer Memorial by Erwin Frey is located along State Route 646 on Rumley's west ...

, Custer’s birthplace * The Revolutionary Soldier and The Statesman, Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial,

Fairmount Park Fairmount Park is the largest municipal park in Philadelphia and the historic name for a group of parks located throughout the city. Fairmount Park consists of two park sections named East Park and West Park, divided by the Schuylkill River, w ...

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

1943 *Architectural sculpture, Indianola Middle School, Columbus, Ohio, 1929 * Christ after the Resurrection, Franklin Commons Park, Columbus, Ohio, 1955Camden, Richard N., Outdoor Sculpture of Ohio, Chagrin Falls, Ohio: West Summit Press, 1980 p.122

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frey, Erwin 1892 births 1968 deaths Sculptors from Ohio Ohio State University faculty