Carl Romanelli is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

noted for his many outdoor sculptures of famous people. Romanelli was born and raised in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. He is a seventh-generation sculptor, and his family is so well known in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

that a museum there is dedicated to his family's sculptural works. Romanelli designed artware in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. For a time, he created artwork for the

Works Project Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects, i ...

. Lamps, plates and pottery designed by him were issued by Maddux of California, Incolay Studios Metroluxas well as

Metlox Pottery Metlox Pottery, strictly speaking Metlox Manufacturing Company, was a manufacturer of ceramic housewares, located at 1200 Morningside Drive, Manhattan Beach, California. The pottery factory closed in 1989. History Metlox Pottery was founded in ...

of California in Manhattan Beach. At Metlox, he designed (holds Patent) various glassware and pottery. In the 1960s and 1970s, he turned toward life-size statues of people, many of them designed to be displayed outdoors. Among his more notable public works are a statue of St. Michael outside St. Michael's Church in Los Angeles; a statue of

St. Vincent de Paul Vincent de Paul, CM (24 April 1581 – 27 September 1660), commonly known as Saint Vincent de Paul, was a Occitan French Catholic priest who dedicated himself to serving the poor. In 1622 Vincent was appointed a chaplain to the galleys. Afte ...

in Los Angeles; and a modern art piece outside Temple Shaarei Tikvah in

Arcadia, California Arcadia is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, located about northeast of downtown Los Angeles in the San Gabriel Valley and at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains. It contains a series of adjacent parks consisting of th ...

. He also designed (but did not execute) the Joseph Scott statue outside the Stanley Mosk Courthouse building of the Los Angeles Superior Court. His most famous work is a likeness of

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

outside the

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hotel. The statue was dedicated on September 8, 1978, and stood outside the property in a glass case for 28 years. In 2005, the statue was placed in storage while the facility underwent renovation. It was placed back on public display in 2006 in a courtyard inside the hotel. At one point, the statue was insured for a sizeable $1.5 million. Romanelli also was the sculptor for the Al Jolson Memorial Shrine at Hillside Memorial Park in Los Angeles.

References

*Chipman, Jack. ''Collector's Encyclopedia of California Pottery.'' Paducah, Ky.: Collector Books, 1991. *Gibbs, Carl. ''Collector's Encyclopedia of Metlox Potteries: Identification and Values.'' Paducah, Ky.: Collector Books, 1995.

External links

"The Helmsman," a park sculpture in Los Angeles, California
Accessed August 23, 2007.

Accessed August 23, 2007. Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American people of Italian descent Artists from Los Angeles Sculptors from California {{US-sculptor-stub