Pietro Giacomo Porcelli (30 January 1872 – 28 June 1943) was an Italian-born sculptor responsible for many

statues A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to life-size; a sculpture t ...

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

, including the Explorers' Monument, and those of C. Y. O'Connor and

Alexander Forrest Alexander Forrest CMG (22 September 1849 – 20 June 1901) was an explorer and surveyor of Western Australia, and later also a member of parliament. As a government surveyor, Forrest explored many areas of remote Western Australia, particu ...

Biography

Born in

Bisceglie Bisceglie (; nap, label= Biscegliese, Vescégghie) is a city and municipality of 55,251 inhabitants in the province of Barletta-Andria-Trani, in the Apulia region (''Italian'': ''Puglia''), in southern Italy. The municipality has the fourth hi ...

in the

province of Bari The Province of Bari ( it, provincia di Bari, nap, pruvincia 'e Bari, nap, label= Barese, provinge de Bare) was a province in the region of Apulia, Italy. Its capital was the city of Bari. It has an area of , and a total population of 1,594,1 ...

, he moved to Sydney with his fisherman father at the age of 8. After initial training at the

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Academy of Art, he furthered his study of sculpture and drawing in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

, before returning to Fremantle with his father in 1898. Later that year, he completed his first commission – a bust of

Sir John Forrest Sir John Forrest (22 August 1847 – 2 SeptemberSome sources give the date as 3 September 1918 1918) was an Australian explorer and politician. He was the first premier of Western Australia (1890–1901) and a long-serving cabinet minister i ...

that now stands in the main entrance hall of Parliament House in Perth. His 1902 statue of Alexander Forrest was the first such statue of a prominent public figure to be completed in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

. He also created the imposing figure which stood atop the seven-storey AMP Chambers at the corner of St George's Tce and William St, which was completed in 1915, but demolished in 1972. Porcelli also completed

war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...

s in Kalgoorlie, Boulder,

Victoria Park Victoria Park may refer to: Places Australia * Victoria Park Nature Reserve, a protected area in Northern Rivers region, New South Wales * Victoria Park, Adelaide, a park and racecourse * Victoria Park, Brisbane, a public park and former golf ...

West Leederville West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

and Moora, and numerous headstones in Karrakatta and Fremantle Cemeteries, including that of Sir John Forrest in 1918. After a period of work in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

in the 1920s, he returned to Perth in 1939, where he died in 1943. He is buried in

Karrakatta Cemetery Karrakatta Cemetery is a metropolitan cemetery in the suburb of Karrakatta in Perth, Western Australia. Karrakatta Cemetery first opened for burials in 1899, the first being that of wheelwright Robert Creighton. Managed by the Metropolitan Ce ...

.Metropolitan Cemeteries Board (1998)
Karrakatta Cemetery Historical Walk Trail
.

Major works

Image:AlexanderForrestStatue gobeirne crop.jpg , Alexander Forrest File:CY OConnor Statue Fremantle crop.jpg , C. Y. O'Connor statue File:Explorers' Monument.JPG , Explorers' Monument File:Public art - GH Piesse, Katanning.jpg , Frederick Henry Piesse File:PietroPorcelli MarmionMonument gobeirne.jpg , Celtric cross monument to William Marmion Image:Midland Workshops Memorial, Western Australia.jpg , Peace Image:Shrine of remembrance inside view.jpg , 12-panel frieze

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Porcelli, Pietro 1872 births 1943 deaths 20th-century Australian sculptors Burials at Karrakatta Cemetery Artists from Perth, Western Australia People from the Province of Barletta-Andria-Trani Italian emigrants to Australia 19th-century Australian sculptors