Jerry McKenna
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Jerry McKenna is an American sculptor, notable for his bronze sculptures of military leaders, religious figures and sports stars.


Early life and education

McKenna was born on December 28, 1937, in
Connellsville, PA Connellsville is a city in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, United States, southeast of Pittsburgh and away via the Youghiogheny River, a tributary of the Monongahela River. It is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The population was 7,637 at th ...
. He has lived in
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
for over forty years. He attended Boys Catholic High School in
Augusta, Georgia Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navig ...
,
Bradley Central High School Bradley Central High School is a public high school located in Cleveland, Tennessee that serves approximately 1,700 students from grades 9-12. It was founded in 1916, and is part of the Bradley County Schools system. The school maintains a crosst ...
in
Cleveland, Tennessee Cleveland is the county seat of and largest city in Bradley County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 47,356 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Cleveland metropolitan area, Tennessee (consisting of Bradley and neigh ...
and St. Edward High School in
Lakewood, Ohio Lakewood is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, on the southern shore of Lake Erie. Established in 1889, it is one of Cleveland's historical streetcar suburbs and part of the Greater Cleveland, Greater Clevelan ...
. He began his formal study of art at the age of fourteen at the Gertrude Herbert School of Art in
Augusta, Georgia Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navig ...
. Later, he continued his studies at the American Academy of Art in Chicago and at the San Antonio Art Institute. He received
Bachelor of Fine Arts A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students for pursuing a professional education in the visual, fine or performing arts. It is also called Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA) in some cases. Background The Bachelor ...
degree from the
University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...
, where he was influenced by the sculptor-in-residence, Ivan Meštrović. He also received a Master of Arts from
Webster University Webster University is a private university with its main campus in Webster Groves, Missouri. It has multiple branch locations across the United States and countries across Europe, Asia, and Africa. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs ...
in 1981.


Career

McKenna is a former U.S. Air Force officer and decorated
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
veteran. His early recognition as a sculptor came from his bronze portraits of Air Force generals, including Generals Henry "Hap" Arnold," Jimmy Doolittle, Doyle E. Larson, Billy Mitchell,
Ira C. Eaker General (Honorary) Ira Clarence Eaker (April 13, 1896 – August 6, 1987) was a general of the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. Eaker, as second-in-command of the prospective Eighth Air Force, was sent to England to form and ...
, and John Dale Ryan In 1994, McKenna was commissioned to create The Lincoln-Douglas Debate that stands in Lincoln-Douglas Square in Alton, Ill, where the last of the debates took place in 1857. McKenna's sports sculptures include seventeen portrait busts in the Pro Football Hall of Fame,
Knute Rockne Knut (Norwegian and Swedish), Knud (Danish), or Knútur (Icelandic) is a Scandinavian, German, and Dutch first name, of which the anglicised form is Canute. In Germany both "Knut" and "Knud" are used. In Spanish and Portuguese Canuto is used whi ...
at the
College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vote ...
and his birthplace in
Voss Voss () is a municipality and a traditional district in Vestland county, Norway. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Vossevangen. Other villages include Bolstadøyri, Borstrondi, Evanger, Kvitheim, Mjølfjell, Opphe ...
,
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
, sculptures of Charles A. Comiskey at U. S. Cellular Field in Chicago,
Dan Devine Daniel John Devine (December 23, 1924 – May 9, 2002) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Arizona State University from 1955 to 1957, the University of Missouri from 1958 to 1970, and the Univers ...
, George Gipp, Frank Leahy, Lou Holtz, Ara Parseghian and
Moose Krause Edward Walter "Moose" Krause (born Edward Walter Kriaučiūnas; lt, Edvardas Valteris Kriaučiūnas; February 2, 1913 – December 11, 1992) was an American football, basketball, and baseball player, track athlete, coach, and college athletics a ...
at
Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame Stadium is an outdoor football stadium in Notre Dame, Indiana, the home field of the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team. It was built in 1930 under the guidance of Knute Rockne, regarded as one of the greatest co ...
,
Elroy "Crazylegs" Hirsch Elroy Leon "Crazylegs" Hirsch (June 17, 1923 – January 28, 2004) was an American professional football player, sport executive and actor. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1967 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 1 ...
for the
University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
,
The French Connection (ice hockey) The French Connection is the nickname of a forward line that played for the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League from 1972 until 1979. The line consisted of Hall of Famer Gilbert Perreault at centre and All-Stars Rick Martin and René ...
( Rick Martin, Gilbert Perrault, and
René Robert René Paul Robert (December 31, 1948 – June 22, 2021) was a Canadian professional ice hockey winger who played 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Pittsburgh Penguins, Buffalo Sabres, and Col ...
) at First Niagara Center in Buffalo, NY; Basketball coach Bill Sudeck at Western Reserve University; hurling star
Ollie Walsh Patrick Oliver Walsh (13 July 1937 – 9 March 1996) was an Irish hurler and hurling manager. His career included All-Ireland Championship victories as a player and later as a manager with the Kilkenny senior hurling team. After beginning ...
in County Kilkenny, Ireland, two sculptures of
Tim Horton Miles Gilbert "Tim" Horton (January 12, 1930 – February 21, 1974) was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played 24 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, Pittsburg ...
—one in Buffalo and the other in Hamilton, Ontario, and his sculpture of the late Ralph Wilson, founder and owner of the Buffalo Bills, unveiled in September 2015. McKenna also created the life size sculpture of Olympic Gold medalist in weightlifting, Paul Anderson. The sculpture stands in the Paul Anderson Memorial Park in Toccoa, Georgia.


Awards and honors

McKenna received the
University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...
's 1962 Emil Jacques Medal of Fine Arts and the 2001 Rev. Anthony J. Lauck Award. Also, in 2001, McKenna was awarded an Honorary ND Monogram by the Notre Dame National Monogram Club. He was named the 2003 Sports Sculptor of the Year by the All-American Football Foundation. In 2013, ''Irish America'' Magazine added him to their list of the Top 100 Irish Americans. In 2014, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) named his sculpture of The Four Horsemen as the number one in their list of the Top Five Statues in College Football.


Personal life

McKenna lives in the small Texas Hill Country community of Boerne, Texas and works in a studio that was originally built as a cattle barn. He has both U.S. and Irish citizenship and spends part of each year in Ireland. In 2016, was named Chieftain of the worldwide Clann MacKenna, at a ceremony in County Monaghan, Ireland. In June 2016, he was inducted into the Lou Holtz/Upper Ohio Valley Hall of Fame. McKenna was married to Stephanie Lyn Hawkins from 1961 to 1971, and Gail Ann Thomas from 1972–present. He has one daughter, four sons and eleven grandchildren and one great-grandchild.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McKenna, Jerry 20th-century American sculptors Living people People from Connellsville, Pennsylvania People from Boerne, Texas University of Notre Dame alumni Year of birth missing (living people) Sculptors from Pennsylvania 21st-century American sculptors