''Thompson Elk Fountain'', also known as the David P. Thompson Fountain,. David P. Thompson Monument, Elk Fountain, the Thompson Elk, or simply ''Elk'', is a historic fountain and

bronze sculpture Bronze is the most popular metal for Casting (metalworking), cast metal sculptures; a cast bronze sculpture is often called simply "a bronze". It can be used for statues, singly or in groups, reliefs, and small statuettes and figurines, as w ...

by American artist Roland Hinton Perry. The fountain with its statue was donated to the city of

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

, United States, in 1900 for display in

Downtown Portland Downtown Portland is the city center of Portland, Oregon, United States. It is on the west bank of the Willamette River in the northeastern corner of the southwest section of the city and where most of the city's high-rise buildings are found ...

's Plaza Blocks. It is owned by the City of Portland. The monument became a gathering place for demonstrations by George Floyd protesters, who lit several fires in the troughs along the base in July 2020. The damaged bronze elk statue was removed for cleaning and safekeeping on July 2, 2020. The stone fountain was removed on July 17, 2020, after RACC determined there was severe damage to the stone and basin of the fountain.

Description

''Elk'', formerly installed on Southwest Main between 3rd and 4th Avenues between Chapman Square and Lownsdale Square in Portland's Plaza Blocks, features a

of an

elk The elk (''Cervus canadensis''), also known as the wapiti, is one of the largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. The common ...

, resting on a granite base within an octagon-shaped basin. The statue and base are tall; the basin measures approximately 3 ft. 3 in. x 25 ft. x 8 ft.

History

The monument was designed by Roland Hinton Perry, the sculptor of the Court of Neptune Fountain at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...

and '' Commonwealth'', the statue atop the dome of the

Pennsylvania State Capitol The Pennsylvania State Capitol is the seat of government for the U.S. state of Pennsylvania located in downtown Harrisburg which was designed by architect Joseph Miller Huston in 1902 and completed in 1906 in a Beaux-Arts style with decorative ...

. The fountain and

was donated by former Portland mayor David P. Thompson in 1900 to commemorate the elk that once lived in the area. The project was completed within a budget of $20,000 under the direction of designer E.G. Wright. Constructed of Barre Granite, the fountain design specified a diameter and high base. Wright had planned to complete the monument in time for a

Fourth of July Independence Day (colloquially the Fourth of July) is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the Declaration of Independence, which was ratified by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing the United States ...

dedication to coincide with a city street carnival, but delays from removing nearby trees, widening Main Street, and connecting city water pipe forced Wright to delay completion of the monument. The ''Elk'' was lifted into position in late August, and the Thompson Fountain was finished the first week of September 1900. A carnival sponsored by the Portland

Elks Club The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE; also often known as the Elks Lodge or simply The Elks) is an American fraternal order founded in 1868, originally as a social club in New York City. History The Elks began in 1868 as a soci ...

began that week, and ''

The Oregonian ''The Oregonian'' is a daily newspaper based in Portland, Oregon, United States, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 18 ...

'' informed its readers, "this is not a carnival elk." According to the city, the Exalted Order of Elks refused to dedicate it because they considered the statue "a monstrosity of art." A reporter for ''The Oregonian'' in 2020 explained that, "part of the problem might have been that he Perry sculpturedidn't quite capture the animal found in Oregon's wilds," as it depicts neither an Olympic elk nor a

Rocky Mountain elk The Rocky Mountain elk (''Cervus canadensis nelsoni'') is a subspecies of elk found in the Rocky Mountains and adjacent ranges of Western North America. Habitat The winter ranges are most common in open forests and floodplain marshes in the l ...

. In 1974, Thompson's Elk and the Plaza Blocks were designated as Historic Landmarks by the city's Historic Landmarks Commission, under the name ''David P. Thompson Fountain''. The sculpture appeared in Gus Van Sant's 1991 film ''

My Own Private Idaho ''My Own Private Idaho'' is a 1991 American independent adventure drama film written and directed by Gus Van Sant, loosely based on Shakespeare's ''Henry IV, Part 1'', '' Henry IV, Part 2'', and ''Henry V''. The story follows two friends, Mike ...

'', where the elk was shown with a rider on it. The artwork was surveyed by the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

's "

Save Outdoor Sculpture! Save Outdoor Sculpture! (SOS!) was a community-based effort to identify, document, and conserve outdoor sculpture in the United States. The program was initiated in 1989 and ended in 1999. History Save Outdoor Sculpture! was initiated by Herit ...

" program in 1993. The sculpture appears on the cover art for Portland band

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's 2002 record, '' The Mantle''.

Vandalism and removal

The elk was vandalized many times. It was vandalized during the

Occupy Portland Occupy Portland was a collaboration that began on October 6, 2011 in downtown Portland, Oregon as a protest and demonstration against economic inequality worldwide. It is inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement that began in New York City ...

protest (2011), and had its antlers repaired in early 2012. The statue was tagged with anti-

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messages in 2016. On July 1, 2020, during the

George Floyd protests The George Floyd protests were a series of protests and civil unrest against police brutality and racism that began in Minneapolis on May 26, 2020, and largely took place during 2020. The civil unrest and protests began as part of internat ...

, people protesting police violence built bonfires in two planter boxes beneath the elk statue. The resulting structural damage to the granite base supporting the sculpture was deemed a safety hazard by the

Regional Arts & Culture Council The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) is an organization that administers arts grants in Multnomah, Washington, and Clackamas Counties that also do advocacy in the Portland metropolitan area in Oregon, United States. It evolved from the city� ...

(RACC). The city removed the damaged bronze elk sculpture for cleaning on July 2. After RACC determined that the stone and basin of the fountain were severely damaged, it was removed on July 17. The status of the Elk fountain remained to be determined. Following the deployment of federal forces to Portland, it was reported that as of July 30, the bare mound where the statue once stood remained a site of activity, with demonstrators arguing for and against its continued use for bonfires. In late August, the statue was being kept "safely in storage".

Reinstallation

In February 2022, city officials confirmed plans to reinstall the statue on Main Street by early 2023.

References

External links

Public Art Search: ''Elk''
Regional Arts & Culture Council

by John Terry (November 19, 2011), ''

''
Experts Critique Portland's Most Famous Public Art
by Joe Streckert (December 9, 1015), ''

Portland Monthly ''Portland Monthly'' (also referred to as ''Portland Monthly Magazine'') is a monthly news and general interest magazine which covers food, politics, business, design, events and culture in Portland, Oregon. The magazine was co-founded in 2003 b ...