Lorado Taft
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Lorado Taft (1860-1936) was an American sculptor, writer, and teacher who played a central role in developing public sculpture in the Midwest. Born in Elmwood, Illinois, he studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and taught at the Art Institute of Chicago for nearly 40 years. His influential book The History of American Sculpture (1903) was the first comprehensive survey of the subject.
Taft's most ambitious work is the Fountain of Time (1922) in Chicago's Washington Park, a 126-foot concrete sculpture depicting 100 figures processing past a hooded figure of Time. His Eternal Silence (the Graves statue) at Graceland Cemetery is one of Chicago's most haunting monuments.
Sculptures by Lorado Taft
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About Lorado Taft
The Fountain of Time (1922) in Chicago's Washington Park: a 126-foot sculpture showing 100 human figures passing before a cloaked figure of Time. It was inspired by a line from Austin Dobson's poem.
Major works are in Chicago: the Fountain of Time in Washington Park and Eternal Silence at Graceland Cemetery. His studio, now the Lorado Taft Midway Studios, is a National Historic Landmark on the University of Chicago campus.
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