Emma Stebbins (1 September 1815 - 25 October 1882) was an American sculptor and the first woman to receive a public art commission from New York City. She was best known for her work ''Angel of the Waters (1873)'', also known as

Bethesda Fountain Bethesda Terrace and Fountain are two architectural features overlooking the southern shore of the Lake in New York City's Central Park. The fountain, with its ''Angel of the Waters'' statue, is located in the center of the terrace. Bethesda T ...

, located on the

Bethesda Terrace Bethesda Terrace and Fountain are two architectural features overlooking the southern shore of The Ramble and Lake, the Lake in New York City's Central Park. The fountain, with its ''Angel of the Waters'' statue, is located in the center of the ...

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

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 * '' ...

Biography

Early life

Stebbins was born on September 1, 1815 in New York City. She was the daughter of a wealthy banker, John L. Stebbins and Mary Largin. She was one of nine children and her family encouraged her interest in the arts.

Life in Rome

In 1856, Stebbins’ brother,

Henry G. Stebbins Col. Henry George Stebbins (September 15, 1811 – December 9, 1881) was a U.S. Representative from New York during the latter half of the American Civil War. Early life Stebbins was born in Ridgefield, Connecticut, to Mary Largin (1783–1874) ...

, encouraged her to travel to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

to pursue sculpting. That May, Stebbins, her younger sister Caroline, and their mother traveled to Rome, where Emma and Caroline settled. While Caroline married

John Rollin Tilton John Rollin Tilton (New London, New Hampshire, USA, 8 June 1828 - 28 March 1888) was an Italian-American painter, mainly of ''vedute'' of picturesque urban scenes. Biography He was initially self-taught, but then trained in Florence, and late ...

, an American painter, in 1858, Emma was welcomed into a society of expatriates by

Harriet Hosmer Harriet Goodhue Hosmer (October 9, 1830 – February 21, 1908) was a neoclassical sculptor, considered the most distinguished female sculptor in America during the 19th century. She is known as the first female professional sculptor. Among other ...

, also an American sculptor. Hosmer introduced Stebbins to some of her future teachers including John Gibson and Paul Akers. One of the leading ladies of the expatriates in Rome was

Charlotte Cushman Charlotte Saunders Cushman (July 23, 1816 – February 18, 1876) was an American stage actress. Her voice was noted for its full contralto register, and she was able to play both male and female parts. She lived intermittently in Rome, in an expa ...

, an American actress. Upon meeting Stebbins, Cushman took a special interest in both her work and in her affections. The pair quickly became a couple and within a year of meeting, the women exchanged unofficial vows and considered themselves married. As she had done for others before, Cushman used her influence to help secure commissions for Stebbins. Stebbins and Cushman's romance strained their relationship with Hosmer, who had once been the object of Cushman's affections and influence. In September 1857, Stebbins and Charlotte returned the States so Cushman could recoup her savings, after her business manager embezzled funds. During Cushman's acting tour, Stebbins stayed with her family in New York. On July 6, Cushman gave her final performance and the couple sailed to England. Before returning to Rome in November 1858, the couple took a tour of the continent.

Later years

Stebbins and Cushman lived together for 12 years before returning to the United States after Cushman was diagnosed with breast cancer. Stebbins had stopped working in order to care for Cushman, until her death in 1876. Stebbins spent nearly the rest of her life writing Cushman's biography, ''Charlotte Cushman: Her Letters and Memories of Her Life,'' and died on October 25, 1882 from lung disease. She was buried in

Green-Wood Cemetery Green-Wood Cemetery is a cemetery in the western portion of Brooklyn, New York City. The cemetery is located between South Slope/ Greenwood Heights, Park Slope, Windsor Terrace, Borough Park, Kensington, and Sunset Park, and lies several bl ...

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

Works

Stebbins was a neoclassical sculptor and made about two dozen small-scale marble statues and two public works in bronze. Unlike the majority of her peers, Stebbins enjoyed making smaller pieces and liked to do all of her carving herself. In 1842, some of Stebbins’ work was featured at the

National Academy of Design The National Academy of Design is an honorary association of American artists, founded in New York City in 1825 by Samuel Morse, Asher Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E. Thompson, Charles Cushing Wright, Ithiel Town, and others "to promote the fin ...

in New York. She was also nominated to be an associate member of the group, which was open to amateurs. However, Stebbins’ election was nullified after an unspecified breach in procedure. Her name was never resubmitted. In 1847, Stebbins’ submitted oil copies to be displayed at the

Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Maryl ...

. While Stebbins lived in Rome, she completed a number of statues including ''The Lotus Eater (1857-60)'', which was commissioned by British sculptor John Gibson, and ''Industry (1859)'' and ''Commerce (1859)'', which were both commissioned by Charles Heckscher. ''Industry'' and ''Commerce'' were both displayed at the

Goupil & Cie Goupil & Cie is an international auction house and merchant of contemporary art and collectibles. Jean-Baptiste Adophe Goupil founded Goupil & Cie in 1850. Goupil & Cie became a leading art dealership in 19th-century France, with its headquart ...

gallery in New York in 1860. In 1860, Stebbins also completed a bust of Cushman, her lifelong partner. Later in life, the bust was a popular request for replication. Through the 1860s, Stebbins completed ''The Treaty of Henry Hudson with the Indians (1860), Sandalphon (1861), Satan (1862),'' and ''Christopher Columbus (1867).'' ''Christopher Columbus'' was the only life-sized marble piece that Stebbins created.

''Horace Mann (1865)''

Towards the end of 1861, Stebbins had been commissioned to complete a bronze statue of

Horace Mann Horace Mann (May 4, 1796August 2, 1859) was an American educational reformer, slavery abolitionist and Whig politician known for his commitment to promoting public education. In 1848, after public service as Secretary of the Massachusetts Sta ...

. The piece was to be erected in front of the State House in Boston. Cushman, a native to Boston, had a special interest in the project and is thought to have used her connections to get Stebbins the commission.

''Angel of the Waters (1873)''

Stebbins is best known for ''Angel of the Waters'', which sits atop of Bethesda Fountain. Rumors of nepotism surrounded the project because Stebbins’ brother was the chairman of Central Park's Committee on Statuary, Fountains and Architectural Structure. Many believe that he pressured the committee into giving his sister the commission. Stebbins was inspired by the biblical story in which an angel gives the waters of Bethesda healing powers; it is in reference to the

Croton Aqueduct The Croton Aqueduct or Old Croton Aqueduct was a large and complex water distribution system constructed for New York City between 1837 and 1842. The great aqueducts, which were among the first in the United States, carried water by gravity from ...

, which brought fresh water to the city beginning in 1842.

Legacy

Angel of the Waters, Bethesda Terrace, Central Park, NYC

Much of what we know about Stebbins comes from her sister, Mary Stebbins Garland. After Stebbins’ death, Garland documented her sister's work in a scrapbook and wrote an unpublished biography, ''Notes on the Art Life of Emma Stebbins''. The scrapbook contained several photos of Stebbins’ work in chronological order, as well as pictures of Stebbins and those who had encouraged her, such as Cushman and Stebbins’ brother Henry. ''Angel of the Waters'' has been featured in many New York movies, such as ''

Angels In America ''Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes'' is a two-part play by American playwright Tony Kushner. The work won numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the Tony Award for Best Play, and the Drama Desk Award for O ...

'', ''

Home Alone 2 ''Home Alone 2: Lost in New York'' is a 1992 American Christmas comedy film directed by Chris Columbus and written and produced by John Hughes. The sequel to the 1990 film ''Home Alone'' and the second film in the ''Home Alone'' franchise, t ...

'', ''Elf'' and ''Enchanted''. In June 2019, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' wrote an obituary for Stebbins as part of their Overlooked series. Stebbins’ obituary was added as a member of the

LGBTQ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

community.

Gallery

File:Central Park NYC - Angel of Waters statue by Emma Stebbins - IMG 5722.JPG, alt=Angel of the Waters statue, ''The Angel of the Waters (1873)'' in

. File:Bethesda Fountain - Central Park (4823012083).jpg, alt=Angel of the Waters statue, ''Angel of the Waters'' at

File:Art Institute of Chicago-1150.jpg, alt=Industry and Commerce Statues, ''Industry (1859)'' and ''Commerce (1859)'' File:Horace Mann by Emma Stebbins - Boston, MA - DSC05471.JPG, alt=Horace Mann Statue, The ''Horace Mann (1865)'' statue outside the

Massachusetts State House The Massachusetts State House, also known as the Massachusetts Statehouse or the New State House, is the List of state capitols in the United States, state capitol and seat of government for the Massachusetts, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, lo ...

. File:Christopher Columbus by Emma Stebbins - Brooklyn, NY - DSC07521.JPG, alt=Christopher Columbus Statue, ''Christopher Columbus (1867)'' File:Christopher Columbus statue Columbus Park Brooklyn front view.jpg, alt=Christopher Coumbus Statue, ''Christopher Columbus (1867)''

References

External links

Emma Stebbins and "Angel of the Waters"

Bethesda Fountain by Emma Stebbins

Emma Stebbins- to work as a sculptor

The Complete Guide to New Yorks Central Park - Bethesda Fountain.

*
Official Website Central Park: Angel of the Waters Fountain
*
Entry for Emma Stebbins
on the

Union List of Artist Names The Union List of Artist Names (ULAN) is a free online database of the Getty Research Institute using a controlled vocabulary, which by 2018 contained over 300,000 artists and over 720,000 names for them, as well as other information about artist ...

Emma Stebbins scrapbook, on microfilm, compiled by her sister Mary Stebbins Garland
at the Archives of American Art
Emma Cushman, full-length portrait, seated, facing right, looking at a book in her lap
Charlotte S. Cushman papers, Library of Congress {{DEFAULTSORT:Stebbins, Emma 1815 births 1882 deaths American women sculptors Lesbian artists LGBT artists from the United States LGBT people from New York (state) Artists from New York City American expatriates in Italy Burials at Green-Wood Cemetery 19th-century American sculptors 19th-century American women artists Sculptors from New York (state)