Putnam_Collection_of_Sculpture,_Princeton_University
Putnam Collection of Sculpture, Princeton University
A group of sculptures on the Princeton University campus
The John B. Putnam, Jr. Memorial Collection of Sculpture is a group of outdoor sculptures distributed through the Princeton University campus in Princeton, New Jersey. The collection is made up of works from 20th and 21st century sculptors.[1] In March 1968, President Robert Goheen announced that an anonymous donor gave a $1 million fund for the collection in honor of Princeton alumni John B. Putnam, Jr., Lieutenant U.S.A, who was killed in action during World War II.[2][3] The works were selected based on a committee of alumni who current or former directors of art museums,[3] and the first 20 were purchased in 1969 and 1970.[4]
The collection was first designed to have only 20 sculptures,[4] but after receiving George Segal's Abraham and Issac, in 1979, the total catalogue increased to 21.[5] The Princeton University Art Museum describes the collection as "not a static phenomenon" and that "work is underway to identify and purchase or commission works by artists."[1]
Original twenty
The following is the twenty original sculptures before later ones were added.[4]
| Name of Piece | Artist | Executed | Installed | Material | Location | Image | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atmosphere and Environment X | Louise Nevelson | 1969–1970 | 1971 | Cor-Ten steel | Between Nassau Street and Firestone Library | ![](./File:"Atmosphere_and_Environment_X"_by_Louise_Nevelson.jpg) |
[6][7] |
| Construction in the Third and Fourth Dimension | Antoine Pevsner | 1961–1962 | 1972 | Cast bronze | Courtyard of Jadwin Hall |  |
[8][9] |
| Cubi XIII | David Smith | 1963 | 1969 | Stainless steel | Between McCormick Hall and Whig Hall |  |
[10][11] |
| Five Disks: One Empty | Alexander Calder | 1969–1970 | 1971 | Painted mild steel | Fine Hall Plaza |  |
[12][13] |
| Floating Figure | Gaston Lachaise | 1927 | 1969 | Cast bronze | Compton Court, Graduate College | ![](./File:"Floating_Figure"_by_Gaston_Lachaise.jpg) |
[14][15] |
| Head of a Woman | Designed by Pablo Picasso; executed by Carl Nesjar | 1971[lower-alpha 1] | 1971 | Cast concrete, granite, and quartzite | Located on the lawn between Spelman Halls and New South Building |  |
[16][17] |
| Marok-Marok-Miosa | Eduardo Paolozzi | 1965 | 1969 | Welded aluminum | Stairwell of the Architecture Building |  |
[18][19] |
| Mastodon VI | Michael Hall | 1968 | 1969 | Bronze and aluminum | Courtyard of MacMillan Building | [20][21] | |
| Moses | Tony Smith | 1967–1968 | 1969[lower-alpha 2] | Painted mild steel | Lawn in front of Prospect House |  |
[22][23] |
| Northwood II | Kenneth Snelson | 1970 | 1973 | Stainless steel | East Dormitory Courtyard of the Graduate College |  |
[24][25] |
| Oval with Points | Henry Moore | 1969–70 | 1971 | Bronze | Between Stanhope Hall and Morrison Hall |  |
[26][27] |
| Professor Albert Einstein | Sir Jacob Epstein | 1933 | 1970 | Cast bronze | Fine Hall Library | [28][29] | |
| Song of the Vowels | Jacques Lipchitz | 1969[lower-alpha 3] | 1969 | Cast bronze | Between Firestone Library and the University Chapel |  |
[30][31] |
| Sphere VI | Arnaldo Pomodoro | 1966 | 1969 | Polished bronze | Entrance of Fine Hall Library[lower-alpha 4] |  |
[32][33] |
| Spheric Theme | Naum Gabo | 1973–1974 | 1974 | Stainless steel | Courtyard of the Engineering Quadrangle |  |
[34][35] |
| Stone Riddle | Masayuki Nagare | 1967 | 1972 | Black granite | Courtyard of Engineering Quadrangle |  |
[36][37] |
| The Bride | Reg Butler | 1956–1961 | 1970 | Cast bronze | Courtyard of Rockefeller College |  |
[38][39] |
| Two Planes Vertical Horizontal II | George Rickey | 1970 | 1972 | Stainless steel | Between East Pyne Hall and the University Chapel |  |
[40][41] |
| Upstart II | Clement Meadmore | 1970 | 1973 | Cor-Ten steel | Entrance to the Engineering Quadrangle |  |
[42][43] |
| White Sun | Isamu Noguchi | 1966 | 1970 | Saravezza marble | Lobby of Firestone Library |  |
[44][45] |
Official additions
Once the initial collection was finished, the university received George Segal's Abraham and Issac as a gift in 1979.[5] The piece was commissioned for Kent State University in memorial of the 1970 Kent State shootings , but it was deemed too provocative.[46][47] Segal subsequently donated it to Princeton as it was where he taught sculpture,[47] and it was installed in 1979.[48] The university would continue to receive additional sculptures through purchasing, continued support by the Putnam family through the Mildred Andrews Fund, or as gifts from artists; however, only Segal's work was included in the collection.[5]
| Name of Piece | Artist | Executed | Installed | Material | Location | Image | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abraham and Isaac: In Memory of May 4, 1970, Kent State University | George Segal | 1978–1979 | 1979 | Cast bronze | Between Firestone Library and the University Chapel |  |
[48][49][3] |
Unofficial additions
The Princeton University Art Museum classifies several other pieces of artwork as falling under either the collection, although no reference to them as official additions can be found.[lower-alpha 5] Additionally, while the art museum's map on the Putnam Collection labels Scott Burton's Public Table as part of the collection,[50][lower-alpha 6] no official publication nor the listing on the art museum's website considers it an official component.[51][52]
| Name of Piece | Artist | Executed | Installed | Material | Location | Image | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Einstein's Table | Maya Lin | 2019 | 2019 | Jet Mist Granite | Lewis Arts Complex |  |
[53][54] |
| The Princeton Line | Maya Lin | 2018 | 2018 | Earth drawing | Lewis Arts Complex |  |
[55][54] |
| URODA | Ursula von Rydingsvard | 2015 | 2015 | Copper, steel, bronze | Entrance to the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment | [56] |
Putnam funding
Several works on campus, while not part of the collection, have received funding from either the Mildred Andrews Fund, like Scott Burton's Public Table,[52] or the John B. Putnam Jr. Memorial Fund, like Doug and Mike Starn's (Any) Body Oddly Propped.[57]
- The piece was fabricated and installed during the same year.
- "Campus Collections". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 12.
- Kiefer-Roulet, Evelyn (September 1, 2008). "The John and Mildred Putnam Sculpture Collection Patronage and the Role of a Campus Sculpture Collection". Collections. 4 (3): 266. doi:10.1177/155019060800400307. ISSN 1550-1906.
- Leitch 1978, p. 397–398.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 8.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 76.
- "Atmosphere and Environment X (y1969-18)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- "Construction in the Third and Fourth Dimension (y1969-130)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved 2021-07-26.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 88.
- "Cubi XIII (y1969-19)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 108.
- "Five Disks: One Empty (y1969-126)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved 2021-07-26.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 40.
- "Floating Figure (y1969-72)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 56.
- "Head of a Woman (y1969-131)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 92–93.
- "Marok-Marok-Miosa (y1969-21)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 84.
- "Mastodon VI (y1969-81)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 52.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 112.
- "Moses (y1969-104)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved 2021-07-26.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 116.
- "Northwood II (y1969-16)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 68.
- "Oval with Points (y1969-128)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- "Professor Albert Einstein (y1970-115)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 44.
- "Song of the Vowels (y1969-22)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 60.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 96.
- "Sphere VI (y1969-20)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- "Spheric Theme (y1974-85)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 48.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 72.
- "Stone Riddle (y1972-41)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- "The Bride (y1969-127)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 36.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 100.
- "Two Planes Vertical Horizontal II (y1972-42)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- "Upstart II (y1971-13)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 64.
- "White Sun (y1969-129)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 80.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 104–105.
- Burgess, Daniel (November 20, 2019). "Art in the bubble: 'Abraham and Isaac'". The Daily Princetonian. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 104.
- "Abraham and Isaac: In Memory of May 4, 1970, Kent State University (y1978-49)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved 2021-07-26.
- "Putnam Collection". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Kelleher 1982, p. 35.
- "Public Table". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
- "Einstein's Table (2019-238)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Spike, Carlett (December 4, 2019). "On the Campus: Maya Lin's 'The Princeton Line' and 'Einstein's Table'". Princeton Alumni Weekly. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- "The Princeton Line (2018-88)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- "URODA (2015-6739)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- "(Any) Body Oddly Propped (2015-6737)". Princeton University Art Museum. Princeton University. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
Bibliography
- Sculpture of Princeton University. Little Books. Princeton: Princeton University Art Museum. 2011.
Works cited
- Leitch, Alexander (1978). A Princeton Companion. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-04654-9. JSTOR j.ctt13x0zx2.
- Kelleher, Patrick J. (1982). Living With Modern Sculpture: The John B. Putnam, Jr., Memorial Collection. Princeton: Princeton University Art Museum in association with Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-03897-1.