Elisabet Ney facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Elisabet Ney
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Elisabet Ney by Friedrich Kaulbach, 1860
With a bust of King George V of Hanover |
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| Born |
Franzisca Bernadina Wilhelmina Elisabeth Ney
January 26, 1833 |
| Died | June 29, 1907 (aged 74) Austin, Texas, U.S.
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| Nationality | German, American |
| Known for | Sculpture |
| Spouse(s) | Edmund Montgomery |
| Memorial(s) | Elisabet Ney Museum |
Elisabet Ney (born Franzisca Bernadina Wilhelmina Elisabeth Ney; January 26, 1833 – June 29, 1907) was a talented German-American sculptor. She spent the first part of her life and career in Europe. There, she created sculptures of important leaders like Otto von Bismarck, Giuseppe Garibaldi, and King George V of Hanover.
When she was 39, Elisabet Ney moved to Texas with her husband, Edmund Montgomery. She became a very important artist in Texas. Some of her most famous sculptures from her time in Texas include large marble statues of Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin. These were made for the Texas State Capitol. Many of her artworks are now kept at the Elisabet Ney Museum in Austin, which was once her home and art studio. You can also find her sculptures in the United States Capitol, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and other collections in Germany.
Contents
Early Life and Artistic Beginnings
Elisabet Ney was born in Münster, a region in Prussia, on January 26, 1833. Her father, Johann Adam Ney, was a stonecarver. Her parents were Catholic and had roots in Alsace and Poland. From a young age, Elisabet knew she wanted to meet and create art about important people.
She often helped her father with his work. When her parents didn't want her to become a sculptor, she went on a hunger strike for weeks! Her parents finally agreed. In 1852, she became the first female sculpture student at the Munich Academy of Art. She studied there with Professor Max von Widnmann and earned her diploma in 1854. After graduating, she moved to Berlin to learn from Christian Daniel Rauch. He taught her about realism and German art traditions. This is when she started sculpting her first portraits of important German people.
Sculpting Career in Europe
Elisabet Ney opened her own art studio in Berlin in 1857. The famous German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer agreed to let her sculpt his portrait. This happened because her friend, Edmund Montgomery, convinced him. She later married Edmund in 1863. Her sculpture of Schopenhauer was a big success!
This success led to many more important projects. She sculpted Jacob Grimm (one of the Brothers Grimm), the Italian military leader Giuseppe Garibaldi, and the composer Richard Wagner. She also created portraits of Cosima von Bülow (Wagner's future wife), the German political leader Otto von Bismarck, and King George V of Hanover. King George also asked her to sculpt the composer Joseph Joachim and his wife, Amalie Joachim. In 1868, after finishing the Bismarck sculpture, Elisabet Ney was asked to create a full-size statue of Ludwig II of Bavaria in Munich.
Moving to the United States
In the early 1880s, Elisabet Ney was living in Texas. Governor Oran M. Roberts invited her to Austin. This invitation helped her restart her art career. In 1892, she built an art studio called Formosa in the Hyde Park area of Austin. She then began looking for new projects.
In 1891, Elisabet Ney received a special request. She was asked to create statues of Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin for the Chicago World's Fair in 1893. The Texas state government also gave her money for this project. However, she missed the deadline, so her sculptures were not shown at the fair. Today, these beautiful marble statues of Houston and Austin can be seen in the Texas State Capitol in Austin. They are also in the National Statuary Hall Collection at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C..
She also sculpted a memorial for the military officer Albert Sidney Johnston for his grave in the Texas State Cemetery. One of her most famous works is the figure of Lady Macbeth. The plaster model is at the Elisabet Ney Museum, and the finished marble statue is in the Smithsonian American Art Museum. She even convinced William Jennings Bryan, a famous speaker and presidential candidate, to pose for a portrait. She hoped to sell copies of this sculpture to debate clubs across the country.
Her 1903 sculpture of David Thomas Iglehart is now at Symphony Square in Austin. It is on loan to the Austin Symphony Society. What might be Elisabet Ney's last known work is the 1906 Schnerr Memorial. This sculpture shows a small cherub resting over a grave and can be found at Der Stadt Friedhof in Fredericksburg, Texas.
Besides her sculpting, Elisabet Ney was also active in Austin's cultural life. Her studio, Formosa, became a popular place for cultural gatherings. Famous visitors included the composer Paderewski and the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova.
Family Life
In 1853, while visiting friends, Elisabet Ney met Edmund Montgomery. He was a Scottish medical student, scientist, and philosopher. They stayed in touch. Even though Elisabet felt that marriage could limit women, they got married in Madeira on November 7, 1863.
Elisabet was always open about her views on women's roles. She wore pants and rode horses like men did. She also liked to design her own clothes, which included boots and a black artist's coat.
In 1863, Edmund Montgomery became ill. By 1870, a war had started in Europe. That autumn, Elisabet became pregnant with their first child. Edmund received a letter from a friend who had moved to Thomasville, Georgia, calling it "Earth's paradise." So, on January 14, 1871, Elisabet and Edmund moved to Georgia. Their first son, Arthur, was born there in 1871, but he sadly died two years later. The Georgia colony didn't work out as they had hoped.
Elisabet and Edmund looked for another place to live in the United States. They went to Red Wing, Minnesota, where their second son, Lorne (1872–1913), was born. Later that year, Elisabet traveled alone to Texas. With help from a businessman in Galveston, she found Liendo Plantation near Hempstead. On March 4, 1873, Edmund and the rest of the family arrived, and they bought the plantation. While Edmund focused on his scientific research, Elisabet managed the plantation for the next twenty years.
Death and Lasting Impact
Elisabet Ney passed away in her studio on June 29, 1907. She is buried next to Edmund Montgomery, who died four years later, at Liendo Plantation.
After her death, Edmund sold the Formosa studio. However, Elisabet had wished for her artworks and belongings inside the studio to be given to the University of Texas at Austin. On April 6, 1911, her friends created the Texas Fine Arts Association (now called Contemporary Austin) to honor her. This is the oldest organization in Texas that supports visual arts. Formosa is now the Elisabet Ney Museum. In 1941, the City of Austin took over its ownership and operation.
In 1961, a school in Lake Jackson, Texas was renamed Elisabet Ney Elementary School in her honor.
Gallery
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Portrait bust of Jacob Grimm
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Elisabeth Ney around 1859 with a bust of Arthur Schopenhauer
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Portrait bust of Eilhard Mitscherlich
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Portrait bust of Giuseppe Garibaldi
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Portrait statue of Ludwig II of Bavaria
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Edmund Montgomery
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Elisabet Ney in her Atelier in Texas around 1900
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Lady Macbeth
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Tomb of Albert Sidney Johnston in the Texas State Cemetery
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Statue of Albert Sidney Johnston
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Statue of Stephen F. Austin
Given by Texas to the National Statuary Hall Collection -
Statue of Sam Houston
Given by Texas to the National Statuary Hall Collection
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See also
In Spanish: Elisabet Ney para niños
