What do Edgar Allan Poe and Bill Russell Have in Common?

Poe Returning to Boston

Bill Russell Legacy Project

My answer to the title question: Both have statues created by women artists in Boston: Poe by Steff Rocknak and Russell by Ann Hirsch. The dedicated, thorough approach of each artist to her subject links both stories of how their artworks came to be.

Bill Russell Legacy Project by Ann Hirsch, completed 2015

In the second phase of the project, Ann collaborated with teens from Roxbury and Somerville to codesign the sculptures of the children through a mentorship process.

The artwork features a sculpture of Bill Russell in game action pose with 11 granite plinths representing the 11 championships he helped the Boston Celtics win …

The sculptures of the children represent the potential in each child to succeed based on his or her own merits.

The sculpture of Mr. Russell represents Bill Russell the whole man.

“The Bill Russell Legacy project is dedicated to the great Celtics champion, human rights activist and national mentorship leader, Bill Russell. Russell’s adaptation of lessons learned on the court of basketball into a philosophy for civic engagement, mentorship and compassion are central to the work. Here concepts derived from basketball are translated through the structure of the artwork which is experienced through a process of physical exploration and interaction. There are ten granite plinths each featuring a key word and a corresponding quotation to illuminate the myriad accomplishments spanning Mr. Russell’s career both on and off the court.” ( quoted from Ann Hirsch Sculpture Studio, description of project,  additionally quoted in captions )

Poe Returning to Boston by Stefanie Rocknak, completed 2014

Rocknak is known as a woodcarver, but to make this statue, she left her usual medium for bronze.

Claiming that the process of sculpting the clay model for bronze casting “loosened me up a bit,” Rocknak explained that the possibility of an additive process enabled her to experiment.

I also like to use a lot of line work—sort of a two-dimensional approach to the three-dimensional object—and that carried over to the clay as well.”

“It wasn’t about me creating some sort of idiosyncratic expression of Poe—I wanted something that everybody could recognize and enjoy. So, I had to include the raven, but I had to do it in a way that was kind of different.”

Poe’s relationship with his birthplace was turbulent, since his dark literary style was often criticized by the Boston elite, whom he ridiculed in turn. Yet, Rocknak says that Poe loved aspects of Boston, “namely, that he was born there and his mother had a fairly successful career as an actress there.” Rocknak’s winning design shows Poe running along at the intersection of Boylston and Charles streets near the Common, heralded by his trademark raven and leaving a trail of fluttering manuscripts and a pulsing heart in his wake, “moving away from the stuff he doesn’t like about Boston… to what he loved.”  (quoted from article by Olivia J Kiers for Art New England, additionally quoted in captions )

Resources

Both artists’ websites have more dramatic and detailed images of the art. Both articles from the Boston Globe suggest the complex concerns in creating public art. 

“Edgar Allan Poe immortalized in the city he loathed,” by M.G.Lee, The Boston Globe article October 5, 2014

Rocknak Sculpture: Poe Returning to Boston 

“Bringing a Legend to Life: Sculptor Stefanie Rocknak returns Poe to Boston,” by Olivia J. Kiers, Art New England, October 30, 2015

About the Artist: Steff Rocknak

“Sculpting Bill Russell was labor of love for Ann Hirsch” by Baxter Holmes, The Boston Globe, October 23, 2013 ( a highly engaging story!)

Ann Hirsch Studio, Public Art

Bill Russell Legacy Project

Bill Russell Legacy Project

“Poe Returning to Boston”

“Poe Returning to Boston”

 

Tags: Ann Hirsch, Bill Russell, Bill Russell Legacy Project, bronze, City Hall Plaza, Edgar Allan Poe, granite, Poe Returning to Boston, Steff Rocknak, Tell Tale Heart, The Celtics, The Raven