Robert Hitchcock facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Robert Hitchcock
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Hitchcock standing next to one of his (larger than life) figures at the SAS Garden of Reflection, Perth, Western Australia
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| Born |
Robert Charles Hitchcock
18 August 1944 Perth, Western Australia, Australia
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| Nationality | Australian |
| Education | Perth Tech College |
| Known for | sculpture, drawing |
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Notable work
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Figurative work, portrait busts, life-size sculptures, horses, abstract |
| Movement | Bronze sculpture, modernism |
Robert Charles Hitchcock (born 18 August 1944) is a famous Australian sculptor. He started his art career in 1970. Robert works with many different subjects and materials. He is known as one of Australia's top sculptors who creates portraits. His large bronze sculptures can be found in private collections and as public artworks across Australia and in other countries.
Contents
Who is Robert Hitchcock?
Early Life and Art Training
Robert Hitchcock was born in Perth, Western Australia. He has both Irish and Indigenous Australian family roots. When he was young, he worked as a carpenter. In his early twenties, he began studying art formally at Perth Tech College.
Robert first wanted to study painting. However, he had trouble seeing and mixing colors because of an accident when he was a child. He soon realized he was much better at three-dimensional art.
Exploring Different Art Styles
Robert's first sculptures were experiments. He tried many different techniques and styles. His early art often showed things as they really looked, a style called realism. He also used expressionism, which shows movement in space. He sculpted natural shapes, animals, and people in motion.
Later, Robert moved away from strict realism. He started to create more "stylized" and abstract forms. After finishing college in 1969, he worked in factories that made plaster and fiberglass. He also worked in different bronze foundries, learning how to work with metals.
Robert's Sculpting Career
First Big Art Projects
Robert's first paid art job came in 1970. He was asked to sculpt Aquanita, a famous race horse that ran in the Melbourne Cup in the early 1960s. This sculpture was a quarter of the horse's real size. As Robert's fame grew, he received many more jobs from the horse racing world. He sculpted horses for racing, pacing, polo, and quarter horse racing.
These early horse sculptures led to even bigger projects later on. He created huge horse sculptures for public display in towns like Norseman, Merredin, and Moora in Western Australia.
Sculpting Famous People
In the 1970s, Robert's work started to get a lot of attention. He created a series of sculptures of the famous Russian ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev. Throughout his career, Robert has sculpted many well-known and "interesting people," as he calls them.
Some of these include the musicians Leonard Cohen and Rod McKuen, Professor Ian Constable, and the composer Beethoven. He also sculpted Robbie Burns for the Robbie Burns Society. Many important Australian public figures and sports stars have also been sculpted by him.
Creating Public Artworks
Towards the end of the 1970s, Robert's bronze sculptures became much larger. This made them perfect for public art projects. One of his most important public artworks is his sculpture of Yagan.
In the mid-1970s, members of the Noongar community wanted a statue of Yagan. Yagan was an important Aboriginal warrior. They wanted the statue for the WAY 1979 celebrations. At first, their requests were turned down. However, the Noongar community formed a Yagan Committee. They raised enough money to ask Robert Hitchcock to create the statue.
The result was a life-size bronze statue. Robert's statue of Yagan was officially opened on 11 September 1984. It stands on Heirisson Island in the Swan River near Perth.
Recent Works and Legacy
In 2000, Robert moved into a larger studio where he still works today. His sculptures are still very popular and sought after by collectors. A recent important project was for the SAS Garden of Reflection in Perth.
This project includes three larger-than-life SAS figures. They wear different uniforms from 1957 (when the SAS started in Australia) and modern combat gear. These sculptures are very detailed and show what an Australian SAS soldier truly looks like.
