Gretta Lange Bader (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Margaret Marie Lange; May 25, 1931 – August 1, 2014) was an American

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 ...

best known for her bronze portrait work.

Biography

Margaret Marie Lange was educated at

Pomona College Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became ...

, where she met her future husband

William B. Bader William Banks Bader (September 8, 1931 – March 16, 2016) was an American diplomat who served as the assistant secretary of state for educational and cultural affairs from 1999 to 2001. Early life and education Bader's paternal grandfather was ...

, graduating in 1953."Not for the Faint of Heart: Profile of Pomona alumna and artist Gretta Bader '53"
, Pomona College Magazine, Winter 2002. She studied at the

Academy of Fine Arts Munich The Academy of Fine Arts, Munich (german: Akademie der Bildenden Künste München, also known as Munich Academy) is one of the oldest and most significant art academies in Germany. It is located in the Maxvorstadt district of Munich, in Bavaria, ...

after marrying Bader.Profile from the Weymouth Center for the Arts and Humanities
Retrieved August 10, 2014. She continued studying art at the

Corcoran School of Art The Corcoran School of the Arts and Design (known as the Corcoran School or CSAD) is the professional art school of the George Washington University, in Washington, DC.Peggy McGloneUniversity names first director of Corcoran School of the Arts and ...

and the

Rhode Island School of Design The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD , pronounced "Riz-D") is a private art and design school in Providence, Rhode Island. The school was founded as a coeducational institution in 1877 by Helen Adelia Rowe Metcalf, who sought to increase the ...

. She taught at the Art League School in

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Downto ...

, chairing its Department of Sculpture from 1984 to 1989. She was a visiting scholar at the American Academy in Rome. With her husband, she had four children, Christopher, Katharine, John and actor Diedrich Bader. She died of congestive heart failure in Washington, D.C., on August 1, 2014, aged 83.Notice of death of Gretta Bader
''The Washington Post'', August 10, 2014. Retrieved August 10, 2014.

Works

Sculptures by Bader can be found in the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: *National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra *National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London, with s ...

and the

National Building Museum The National Building Museum is located at 401 F Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is a museum of "architecture, design, engineering, construction, and urban planning". It was created by an act of Congress in 1980, and is a private Non-profit org ...

. She completed over 30 full-size portrait sculptures, including sculptures of

J. William Fulbright James William Fulbright (April 9, 1905 – February 9, 1995) was an American politician, academic, and statesman who represented Arkansas in the United States Senate from 1945 until his resignation in 1974. , Fulbright is the longest serving chair ...

(at the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

Frank Church Frank Forrester Church III (July 25, 1924 – April 7, 1984) was an Americans, American politician and lawyer. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Idah ...

, Claiborne Pell, Donald Ross (at

Pinehurst Resort Pinehurst Resort is a golf resort in Pinehurst, North Carolina in the United States. It has hosted a number of prestigious golf tournaments including three U.S. Open Championships, one U.S. Women's Open, three U.S. Amateur Championships, one PG ...

), and Ben Bradlee, former editor of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

''. She completed hundreds of busts, including 234 designed in 1984 for the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bader, Gretta 1931 births 2014 deaths German emigrants to the United States Sculptors from New Jersey People from Essex County, New Jersey Pomona College alumni Rhode Island School of Design alumni American women sculptors Academy of Fine Arts, Munich alumni 20th-century American sculptors 21st-century American sculptors 20th-century American women artists 21st-century American women artists