Beethoven

Beethoven

This marble bust of Beethoven, made by Norwegian artist Gilbert Riswold lives in Midway Studios after having been relocated many times throughout its life. For the first 82 years after its creation, the sculpture sat in the grass outside Midway Studios, bearing the sever Chicago weather all the while.

Riswold’s depiction of Ludwig van Beethoven most closely resembles an 1820 portrait by Joseph Karl Stieler, in which Beethoven is captured, stern–faced, in the process of composition. It is Beethoven’s size that draws the most interest and makes it noticeable and workable as the central figure in programs such as the summer lecture series.

Gilbert Riswold (1881–1938)

Description taken from a longer study of the bust, writen by Katherine Aanensen, AB in Geographical Studies, 2016.
https://voices.uchicago.edu/exhibitiontemplate/2020/02/07/beethoven/

c. 1926

Marble
42 x 36 in. (106.7 x 91.4 cm)

Located at Midway Studios
929 E. 60th Street

Sculpture