On 'Open Studio': Restoration Of Saint-Gaudensâ 54th Monument
By
GBH Staff
On the latest
Open Studio With Jared Bowen, we tell the story and document the restoration of the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial. Augustus Saint-Gaudens took nearly 14 years to complete this high-relief bronze monument, which celebrates the valor and sacrifices of the Massachusetts 54th.
One of the premier artists of his day, Saint-Gaudens grew up in New York and Boston, but received formal training at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris. In his studio in New York, he hired 40 men to serve as models for the soldiersâ faces. Paid for by private donations and unveiled on May 31, 1897, this monument depicts the 54th Regiment as they marched down Beacon Street, and off for war in 1863.