Karl Broodhagen (1909 – 2002) was a Barbadian sculptor and painter. His most famous works are three public statues in Barbados: the

Bussa Emancipation Statue The Emancipation Statue is a public sculpture symbolising the "breaking of the chains" of slavery at Emancipation. It is located in Barbados, east of Bridgetown at centre of the J.T.C. Ramsay roundabout formed at the junction of the ABC Highway and ...

, a statue of Prime Minister

Grantley Herbert Adams Sir Grantley Herbert Adams, CMG, QC (28 April 1898 – 28 November 1971) was a Barbadian politician. He served as the inaugural premier of Barbados from 1953 to 1958 and then became the first and only prime minister of the West Indies Federa ...

, and a statue of cricketer

Garfield Sobers Sir Garfield St Aubrun Sobers, (born 28 July 1936), also known as Sir Gary or Sir Garry Sobers, is a former cricketer who played for the West Indies between 1954 and 1974. A highly skilled bowler, an aggressive batsman and an excellent fielder, ...

Biography

Born in

Georgetown, Guyana Georgetown is the capital (political), capital and largest city of Guyana. It is situated in Demerara-Mahaica, region 4, on the Atlantic Ocean coast, at the mouth of the Demerara River. It is nicknamed the "Garden City of the Caribbean." It is t ...

, Broodhagen moved to Barbados at the age of 15 to become a tailor's apprentice. While working as a tailor, he began to paint in the 1930s and to sculpt a decade later. He established the art department at Barbados'

Combermere School Combermere School is a school in Barbados, notable as one of the oldest schools in the Caribbean, established in 1695. Its alumni include several leading cricketers, David Thompson, sixth prime minister of Barbados and other politicians, several ...

in 1947; after studying at

Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, officially the Goldsmiths' College, is a constituent research university of the University of London in England. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by the Wor ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in the early 1950s, he returned to Barbados and taught at the school until 1996. In addition to his public statues, Broodhagen primarily created portraits and busts; he described the focus of his work as being "interested in people". He particularly focused on women, and stated in an interview that he sought "to replace the European standards of beauty still slavishly accepted in the West Indies by standards based on the local inhabitants themselves." His works have toured internationally and are included in

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

's collections, and he was awarded the

Gold Crown of Merit The Order of Barbados is a national Order of honours and decorations for Barbados. History The first Order of Barbados was instituted by Queen Elizabeth II by letters patent dated 25 July 1980. With Barbados becoming a republic on 30 November ...

in 1982. He died at home in 2002, aged 93.

Gallery

Sir Grantley Adams statue, Barbados.jpg, Statue of

Sobers statue kensington.jpg, Statue of

References

External links

Karl Broodhagen
at ''Barbados Pocket Guide''
Karl Broodhagen
at ''Totally Barbados'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Broodhagen, Karl 1909 births 2002 deaths Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London Barbadian painters Barbadian sculptors People from Georgetown, Guyana