Adrien Alexandre Voisin (1890–1979), was an American sculptor. He was known for his bronze work, and had been one of the lead architectural sculptors at Hearst Castle.

Early life and education

Adrien Alexandre Voisin was born on May 8, 1979 in the town of

Islip Islip may refer to: Places England *Islip, Northamptonshire *Islip, Oxfordshire United States *Islip, New York, a town in Suffolk County **Islip (hamlet), New York, located in the above town **Central Islip, New York, a hamlet and census-des ...

in Suffolk County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, to parents from France. He was raised in

Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay Europe Ireland *Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

. Voisin first learned the art of taxidermy and apprenticed as a

woodcarver Wood carving is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in the sculptural ornamentation ...

. In his early career he studied art under Elijah Baxter Jr. and

William Sergeant Kendall William Sergeant Kendall (born 1869 in Spuyten Duyvil, New York, died 1938 in Hot Springs, Virginia), was an American painter, most famous for his evocative scenes of domestic life; his wife and three young daughters were frequent subjects in hi ...

at the Yale School of Fine Arts (now Yale School of Art). He continued his art studies in France at the

Beaux-Arts de Paris The Beaux-Arts de Paris is a French ''grande école'' whose primary mission is to provide high-level arts education and training. This is classical and historical School of Fine Arts in France. The art school, which is part of the Paris Sciences ...

; the

École nationale supérieure des arts décoratifs The École nationale supérieure des Arts Décoratifs (ÉnsAD, also known as Arts Decos', École des Arts Décoratifs) is a public grande école of art and design of PSL Research University. The school is located in the Rue d'Ulm in Paris. Profil ...

; and at

Académie Colarossi The Académie Colarossi (1870–1930) was an art school in Paris founded in 1870 by the Italian model and sculptor Filippo Colarossi. It was originally located on the Île de la Cité, and it moved in 1879 to 10 rue de la Grande-Chaumière in the ...

. He also worked under Jean Antoine Injalbert and

Antonin Mercié Marius Jean Antonin Mercié (October 30, 1845 in Toulouse – December 12, 1916 in Paris), was a French sculptor, medallist and painter. Biography Mercié entered the École des Beaux-Arts, Paris, and studied under Alexandre Falguière and ...

in France. While studying at Beaux-Arts de Paris, Voisin was using the an art bronze foundry, when he met the sculptor Alexander Calder, who was a few years older. Calder strongly disliked Voisin's work which he wrote about in his journal. While in France during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he served first in the

American Volunteer Motor Ambulance Corps The American Volunteer Motor Ambulance Corps, also known as the Norton-Harjes Ambulance Corps, was an organization started in London, England, in the fall of 1914 by Richard Norton, a noted archeologist and son of Harvard professor Charles Eliot N ...

; and later served in the 49th Infantry Regiment in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. After the war he moved to California "for his health", as he had been exposed to

mustard gas Mustard gas or sulfur mustard is a chemical compound belonging to a family of cytotoxic and blister agents known as mustard agents. The name ''mustard gas'' is technically incorrect: the substance, when dispersed, is often not actually a gas, b ...

Career

While living in southern California around 1919, he fulfilled multiple architectural commissions for sculptural works, including work on Hearst Castle. In 1927, he did architectural commission work for the Oriental Theatre in Portland, Oregon for an interior sculpture similar to a

Khmer sculpture Khmer sculpture ( km, ចម្លាក់ខ្មែរ, ) refers to the stone sculpture of the Khmer Empire, which ruled a territory based on modern Cambodia, but rather larger, from the 9th to the 13th century. The most celebrated examples a ...

Angkor Wat Angkor Wat (; km, អង្គរវត្ត, "City/Capital of Temples") is a temple complex in Cambodia and is the largest religious monument in the world, on a site measuring . Originally constructed as a Hinduism, Hindu temple dedicated ...

. In 1929, he moved to Montana, to "live among the Indians" with the Blackfeet tribe. While living in Montana he completed bust sculptures of

John Two Guns White Calf John Two Guns White Calf (also known as John Two Guns and John Whitecalf Two Guns) (1872–1934) was a chief of the Piegan Blackfeet in Montana. He was born near Fort Benton, Montana and was the adopted son of Chief White Calf. After the elder Wh ...

, Chief Bad Roads, and

Mountain Chief Mountain Chief (''Ninna-stako'' in the Blackfoot language; – 1942) was a South Piegan warrior of the Blackfoot Tribe. Mountain Chief was also called Big Brave (Omach-katsi) and adopted the name Frank Mountain Chief. Mountain Chief was involved ...

(Ninastuko). One of his pupils was Blackfeet artist

Albert Racine Albert Batiste Rancine, also known as Apowmuckon, or Running Weasel (April 19, 1907 – 1984) was a Blackfoot artist from Browning, Montana in the United States. He started his career as a painter, and by 1936 he was a sculptor. He is noted for his ...

. Voisin returned to Paris in 1930 to exhibit his Native American bronze cast sculptures, which won him awards. A year later in 1931, he moved to Oregon. In 1933, Voisin moved to San Francisco, where he purchased the

Albion Castle The Albion Brewery, also known as Albion Ale And Porter Brewing Company and the Albion Castle, is a defunct brewery in San Francisco, California in operation from 1875 until approximately 1919. The site of the former brewery is also the location ...

, formally the home of the Albion Ale And Porter Brewing Company and a natural occurring mineral water spring. Over the span of almost 20 years he worked to restore the Norman-style stone building, using the aid of old photographs. In 1964, the property was purchased by the San Francisco Mountain Springs Water Company in order to use the springs. Voisin was allowed to remain living on the property beyond that date as a clause of the sale. In 1971, the Gonzaga University in Spokane received 53 sculptures for their Pacific Northwest Indian Center (now known as the

Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture The Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture, formerly the Cheney Cowles Museum and the Pacific Northwest Indian Center, is located in Spokane, Washington's Browne's Addition. It is associated with the Smithsonian Institution, and is accredited by th ...

). At the time of the donation, the center had planned an entire Voisin Gallery wing dedicated to his work.

Death and legacy

Voisin died on May 8, 1979 in

Palos Verdes Estates Palos Verdes Estates (''Palos Verdes'', Spanish for "Green Sticks") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. The city was master-planned by the noted American landscape architect and ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. He was preceded in death by his wife Frances Maude Voisin (née Vahuy) in 1965, and they are both buried in

Golden Gate National Cemetery Golden Gate National Cemetery is a United States national cemetery in California, located in the city of San Bruno, south of San Francisco. Because of the name and location, it is frequently confused with San Francisco National Cemetery, which ...

. Voisin's work was part of the ''Bill and Dorothy Harmsen Art Collection'' at the Denver Art Museum, however in December 2004 the work was donated to the

Colorado Community College System The Colorado Community College System is a public community college system in the U.S. state of Colorado. Created by legislation in 1967, it has 13 member institutions and serves more than 163,000 students annually. History The 1937 Junior Coll ...

. Voisin created notable portrait busts, included busts of Benjamin Franklin Irvine (1935), editor of

The Oregon Journal ''The Oregon Journal'' was Portland, Oregon's daily afternoon newspaper from 1902 to 1982. The ''Journal'' was founded in Portland by C. S. "Sam" Jackson, publisher of Pendleton, Oregon's ''East Oregonian'' newspaper, after a group of Portlander ...

;

, a Piegan Blackfeet chief; and Vachel Lindsay, poet. He created public memorials including the Father McQuade Memorial and Fairfax Whelan Memorial Fountain.

References

External links

* Photographs of Voisin can be found from th
Indians of North America
file,

Oregon Historical Society The Oregon Historical Society (OHS) is an organization that encourages and promotes the study and understanding of the history of the Oregon Country, within the broader context of U.S. history. Incorporated in 1898, the Society collects, preser ...

John Canfield Ewers Papers, 1945-1993
box 9 includes his work, from Smithsonian Online Virtual Archives {{DEFAULTSORT:Voisin, Adrien 1890 births 1979 deaths American architectural sculptors 20th-century American sculptors Yale School of Art alumni École des Beaux-Arts alumni École nationale supérieure des arts décoratifs alumni Académie Colarossi alumni United States Army personnel of World War I People from Islip (town), New York Artists from Newport, Rhode Island Artists from San Francisco American portrait artists Bayview–Hunters Point, San Francisco

Early life and education

Career

Death and legacy

See also

References

External links