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Date Posted:
Charles G. Wicker was known to do whatever it takes to get the job done, so Nancy Deborah Wicker-鈥
Location:
1425 N. Damen Avenue
Chicago, IL 60622
Location Notes:
Northwest of field house
Located Within:
Wicker (Charles, Joel) Park
Artist:
Nancy Deborah Wicker-Eilan
Installed:
2006
Features:
Outdoor, Sculpture
Description
Wicker Park was named in honor of Charles Gustavus Wicker (1820鈥1889), an early Chicago settler, alderman, state legislator, businessman, and real estate speculator who helped develop the surrounding neighborhood. His great granddaughter, artist Nancy Deborah Wicker-Eilan created this bronze sculpture of her ancestor. In 1998, she received approval from 快播视频 Board of Commissioners to sculpt and donate the Charles Gustave Wicker sculpture for installation in the park. Wicker-Eilan raised funds for the artwork and its maintenance, including grants from State of Illinois and the City of Chicago and many individual donations. The artwork was completed several years later.
To involve the students of nearby Pritzker School, Wicker-Eilan developed an educational component of the project. She had the elementary school students take field trips to her studio and the foundry. They also conducted research on the neighborhood and created a multimedia presentation based on what they learned.
Dedicated on September 21, 2006, the bronze figurative sculpture is approximately nine-feet-tall, including the base. Charles Gustavus Wicker is depicted sweeping the floor because when he served as a state legislator, a friend saw him sweeping a Chicago polling place and asked why he was 鈥渄oing that?鈥 Wicker, who also served as a railroad president at the time, replied: 鈥淏ecause it was dirty.鈥 The figure of Wicker stands on a bronze base that represents the unkempt floor.