May 11, 2011

Bas relief commissioned by Richard J. Mahoney

Edwina Sandys, Churchill’s granddaughter, will help dedicate a new sculpture of Sir Winston Churchill created by noted St. Louis sculptor Don Wiegand at a special unveiling ceremony at 11 a.m., Friday, May 13, at the National Churchill Museum, located on the campus of Westminster College in Fulton, MO.

 

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Sandys, an acclaimed artist herself, is responsible for “Breakthrough,” a sculpture on Latshaw Plaza at the Westminster campus that she made from eight sections of the Berlin Wall in memory of her grandfather. The work is the longest contiguous section of the Berlin Wall found in North America.

 

“This new sculpture, which will be erected on the newly constructed Plaza in front of the National Churchill Museum, will create a much more dramatic entrance to attract visitors to our remarkable Museum,” says Dr. Rob Havers, Executive Director of the National Churchill Museum. “The piece captures the decisive moment when Churchill vividly described the Iron Curtain that had fallen across the Continent and, in doing so, provided themetaphor that would encapsulate the Cold War for the next 40 years.”

 

The bas relief sculpture showcases the moment when Churchill delivered the famous “Iron Curtain” line at Westminster College in his landmark address with a metaphor which defined the Cold War for a generation.

 

The sculpture is the work of Don Wiegand, a St. Louis artist of national and international reputation who has won countless awards for his work.

 

Born in St. Louis, Wiegand is responsible for numerous pieces in and around the St.Louis area, including the George “Buzz” Westfall Memorial in the St. Louis County Government Center’s Memorial Park in Clayton. His work may be viewed at the Anheuser-Busch Visitors Center, Cathedral Basilica, Cervantes Convention Center, Jefferson Memorial Museum, Missouri Botanical Garden, and Lambert International Airport.

 

Outside of St. Louis, his work is on display at public institutions such as the John F. Kennedy Library, Mark Twain Home and Museum, Ellis Island, NASA Space Center, U.S. Senate Building, Texas Stadium, The Vatican and the White House.

 

His stainless bas reliefs of “Charles A. Lindbergh” and the “Spirit of St. Louis” became the first bas relief sculptures in space.

 

The Churchill statue has been donated by Richard J. Mahoney of St. Louis, who is a Churchill Fellow and a member of the Board of Governors. He is a longtime supporter of the Churchill Museum and a lifelong admirer of Winston Churchill. He was instrumental in the creation of the “Winston S. Churchill: A Life in Leadership Gallery” at the National Churchill Museum.

 

Mahoney is also Executive in Residence at the Olin Business School and Weidenbaum Center at Washington University in St. Louis.

 

The artwork will be located on the grass to the left of the main entrance of the Museum at the Undercroft of the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury, which houses the National Churchill Museum.

 

The public dedication and unveiling ceremony will take place there on the Plaza. In the case of inclement weather, the ceremony will be moved inside The Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury.

Featured speakers on the program include Sandys, Wiegand, Mahoney, Havers and Dr. George B. Forsythe, President of Westminster. Bruce Brookby, Chair of the Westminster Board of Trustees, will jointhem on the platform.

 

The National Churchill Museum on the campus of Westminster College in Fulton, MO is the only North American institution fully devoted to immortalizing the life and work of Churchill. Founded in 1969, the Museum was recognized in 2009 as ‘America’s ‘National Churchill Museum’ by the United States Congress.

The most visible element of the Museum is the magnificent Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury, a 17th century Christopher Wren church. This church left in ruins courtesy of Germanbombs in World War II was brought, stone by stone, to Fulton and resurrected on Westminster’s campus in 1969. The Church serves both as a permanent memorial to Sir Winston’s life and to his visit in 1946 when he delivered possibly the most famous speech of his long career, the “Iron Curtain” address.

Beneath the Church is the heart of the Memorial, a state-of-the-art Museum that combines interactive technology to tell Churchill’s story through sight, sound and touch. In 2006, Chris Matthews, MSNBC commentator, was present at the opening of this new $4 million exhibition and said its ability to bring history to life in a dynamic, stimulating fashion was incredible and that the quality of its exhibits rivaled that of the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C.

Adjacent to the National Churchill Museum stands a sculpture by Edwina Sandys, Churchill’s granddaughter, entitled “Breakthrough,” which was constructed from eight sections of the Berlin Wall to commemorate the demise of the “Iron Curtain” that Sir Winston had predicted. Visitors may also enjoy the historic gymnasium where Churchill delivered his world famous “Iron Curtain Speech” in 1946 on another part of campus.

The National Churchill Museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Regular admission prices are Adults-$6, Seniors-$5, CollegeStudents and Youth-$4, Children (6-11)-$3, and Children (5 and under)-free.

 

Media contact: Rob Crouse, 573-291-9399, [email protected]

 

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