Fred and Nelly Kinney didn't find John Rogers' sculptures. In spite of being inanimate, his sculptures found them.
David Wilcox / The CitizenFred, David and Nelly Kinney sit with one of their three John Rogers' “The Council of War” sculptures. Several lectures on Rogers will be held throughout the coming year at Seward House in Auburn.
When the couple moved into their Victorian-era home on Jackson Street in Weedsport in 1953, they discovered Rogers' “Is it So Nominated in the Bond” in their living room.
More than 50 years later, the Kinneys lay claim to 62 works by the late American artist (1829-1904) in their home.
“Bond” shows several hallmarks of Rogers' style of sculpture. His works, often about two feet tall and a foot in diameter, were crafted with plaster to position them affordably for buyers in the late 19th century. Though today they command asking prices of several hundred to thousands of dollars, such sculptures often sold for $10 to $20 in their time.
“He sold them by the thousands,” Fred said. “He put all seven of his children through Yale with them.”
Their consistent depth of detail on all sides made them ideal fixtures of bay windows and middle tables in Victorian homes. Rogers crafted each sculpture with a heightened degree of realism that manifested in subtle waves of fabric and hair. He was also one of the only sculptors to craft irises in his human subjects eyes. It is for this reason that a sculpture of Abraham Lincoln was complimented by the late president's son, Robert Todd Lincoln, as the most lifelike of any sculpture he had seen fashioned of his father.
The Kinneys set out to collect Rogers' work in the late 1960s, following several years of studying his life and his art. They visited his studio in New Canaan, Conn., which has since been converted into a museum where the Kinneys met with fellow Rogers admirers in The Rogers Group. Nelly would later relay her considerable body of knowledge about the artist to historical societies across central New York.
Once the Kinneys set out to collect Rogers' work, they found their first fellow collector in a dentist named Haverly.
In one fell swoop they added 13 new Rogers' sculptures to their budding collection.
“As we started to leave with them he said, ‘There's your new family,'” Nelly said.
When the Kinneys left their home on Jackson Street, they left their copy of “Bond” to the buyer. They were surprised by the gift of another copy of “Bond” by Rogers' great, great grandson, also named John Rogers, at a meeting of the group.
“He said ‘I've got two, and you're welcome to have one,'” Fred said.
Rogers created several copies of each sculpture; collectively they are labeled a group. One master edition of each of his 87 groups was cast in bronze and stored in the New York Historical Society in Manhattan. Rogers maintained a studio in the city.
Some groups tied together thematically, such as the series of “The Council of War” sculptures depicting Lincoln, Secretary of War Edward Stanton and Gen. Ulysses S. Grant meeting together. In the first version, Stanton's hands are raised but too close to Lincoln's head to clearly see what they're doing. In a second version, his hands are lowered. The third raises his arms again to clearly show Stanton cleaning his glasses. The Kinneys own all three versions.
Though Rogers often crafted historical figures and other characters from literature, his works typically took the form of simple scenes from life that could resonate with anyone.
“He did everyday people doing everyday things,” Nelly said.
Since his death, the value of Rogers' works has soared due to the destruction or disposal of many copies of his works. But the significance of his statuary to American art is still not widely known nor appreciated.
“Most antique dealers don't know what they are,” said the Kinneys' son, David, also an avid learner of the history of Rogers' life and art.
As the Seward House's series of lectures on Rogers approaches, the Kinneys hope audiences will find an appreciation for the artists' body of work, just as that body of work once found them.
Staff writer David Wilcox can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 245 or david.wilcox@lee.net
If you go
What: Lectures on John Rogers
When: 11 a.m. Friday, July 11, Aug. 8, Sept. 26, Oct. 17, Nov. 21 and Dec. 12
Where: Seward House, 33 South St., Auburn
Cost: Free
To lean more: Call 252-1283
More than 50 years later, the Kinneys lay claim to 62 works by the late American artist (1829-1904) in their home.
“Bond” shows several hallmarks of Rogers' style of sculpture. His works, often about two feet tall and a foot in diameter, were crafted with plaster to position them affordably for buyers in the late 19th century. Though today they command asking prices of several hundred to thousands of dollars, such sculptures often sold for $10 to $20 in their time.
“He sold them by the thousands,” Fred said. “He put all seven of his children through Yale with them.”
Their consistent depth of detail on all sides made them ideal fixtures of bay windows and middle tables in Victorian homes. Rogers crafted each sculpture with a heightened degree of realism that manifested in subtle waves of fabric and hair. He was also one of the only sculptors to craft irises in his human subjects eyes. It is for this reason that a sculpture of Abraham Lincoln was complimented by the late president's son, Robert Todd Lincoln, as the most lifelike of any sculpture he had seen fashioned of his father.
The Kinneys set out to collect Rogers' work in the late 1960s, following several years of studying his life and his art. They visited his studio in New Canaan, Conn., which has since been converted into a museum where the Kinneys met with fellow Rogers admirers in The Rogers Group. Nelly would later relay her considerable body of knowledge about the artist to historical societies across central New York.
Once the Kinneys set out to collect Rogers' work, they found their first fellow collector in a dentist named Haverly.
In one fell swoop they added 13 new Rogers' sculptures to their budding collection.
“As we started to leave with them he said, ‘There's your new family,'” Nelly said.
When the Kinneys left their home on Jackson Street, they left their copy of “Bond” to the buyer. They were surprised by the gift of another copy of “Bond” by Rogers' great, great grandson, also named John Rogers, at a meeting of the group.
“He said ‘I've got two, and you're welcome to have one,'” Fred said.
Rogers created several copies of each sculpture; collectively they are labeled a group. One master edition of each of his 87 groups was cast in bronze and stored in the New York Historical Society in Manhattan. Rogers maintained a studio in the city.
Some groups tied together thematically, such as the series of “The Council of War” sculptures depicting Lincoln, Secretary of War Edward Stanton and Gen. Ulysses S. Grant meeting together. In the first version, Stanton's hands are raised but too close to Lincoln's head to clearly see what they're doing. In a second version, his hands are lowered. The third raises his arms again to clearly show Stanton cleaning his glasses. The Kinneys own all three versions.
Though Rogers often crafted historical figures and other characters from literature, his works typically took the form of simple scenes from life that could resonate with anyone.
“He did everyday people doing everyday things,” Nelly said.
Since his death, the value of Rogers' works has soared due to the destruction or disposal of many copies of his works. But the significance of his statuary to American art is still not widely known nor appreciated.
“Most antique dealers don't know what they are,” said the Kinneys' son, David, also an avid learner of the history of Rogers' life and art.
As the Seward House's series of lectures on Rogers approaches, the Kinneys hope audiences will find an appreciation for the artists' body of work, just as that body of work once found them.
Staff writer David Wilcox can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 245 or david.wilcox@lee.net
If you go
What: Lectures on John Rogers
When: 11 a.m. Friday, July 11, Aug. 8, Sept. 26, Oct. 17, Nov. 21 and Dec. 12
Where: Seward House, 33 South St., Auburn
Cost: Free
To lean more: Call 252-1283
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