Sylvia Shaw Judson
Encyclopedia
Sylvia Shaw Judson also known as Sylvia Shaw Haskins, was an American sculptor and teacher.
, near Chicago
, the daughter of prominent Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw
. She attended the Westover School
in Connecticut. In 1917, she married Clay Judson (1892-1960), a Chicago lawyer. She studied with Anna Hyatt Huntington and Albin Polasek
at the Art Institute of Chicago
and went to Paris
in 1920 to continue her studies under Antoine Bourdelle
at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière
. Judson was influenced by Chinese sculpture and the work of French sculptor Aristide Maillol, whom she met in Paris.
in 1963. As an adult, she joined the Religious Society of Friends
and became an active participant in the church. She later married Sidney Haskins, later of Philadelphia.
Judson had work exhibited at Brookgreen Gardens
, South Carolina; the White House
, Washington, D.C.; the Whitney Museum of American Art
; the Philadelphia Museum of Art
; the Art Institute of Chicago
; and the National Academy of Design
, New York City. In 1926, she was awarded an honorable mention at the Chicago Art Club.
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Early life and education
Shaw was born in 1897 in Lake Forest, IllinoisLake Forest, Illinois
Lake Forest is an affluent city located in Lake County, Illinois, United States. The city is south of Waukegan along the shore of Lake Michigan, and is a part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the North Shore. Lake Forest was founded around Lake Forest College and was laid out as a town in...
, near Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, the daughter of prominent Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw
Howard Van Doren Shaw
Howard Van Doren Shaw was an American architect. He became one of the best-known architects of his generation in the Chicago area.-Early life and career:...
. She attended the Westover School
Westover School
The Westover School, often referred to simply as "Westover," is an independent college-preparatory day and boarding school for girls. Located in Middlebury, Connecticut, USA, the school offers grades 9-12...
in Connecticut. In 1917, she married Clay Judson (1892-1960), a Chicago lawyer. She studied with Anna Hyatt Huntington and Albin Polasek
Albin Polasek
Albin Polasek was a Czech-American sculptor and educator. He created more than four hundred works during his career, two hundred of which are now displayed in the Albin Polasek Museum and Sculpture Gardens in Winter Park, Florida.-Career:Born as Albín Polášek in Frenštát, Moravia , Polasek...
at the Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either...
and went to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1920 to continue her studies under Antoine Bourdelle
Antoine Bourdelle
Antoine Bourdelle , originally Émile Antoine Bourdelle, was an influential and prolific French sculptor, painter, and teacher.-Career:...
at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière
Académie de la Grande Chaumière
The Académie de la Grande Chaumière is an art school in the VIe arrondissement of Paris, France. The school was founded in 1902 by the Swiss Martha Stettler , who refused to teach the strict academic rules of painting of the École des Beaux-Arts. It opened the way to the "Art Indépendant"...
. Judson was influenced by Chinese sculpture and the work of French sculptor Aristide Maillol, whom she met in Paris.
Sculptor and teacher
She won the Logan Prize in 1929 for her sculpture Little Gardener. She authored The Quiet Eye: A Way of Looking at Pictures and For Gardens and Other Places, The Sculpture of Sylvia Shaw Judson and taught sculpture at the American University in CairoAmerican University in Cairo
The American University in Cairo is an independent, non-profit, apolitical, secular institution of higher learning located in Cairo, Egypt...
in 1963. As an adult, she joined the Religious Society of Friends
Religious Society of Friends
The Religious Society of Friends, or Friends Church, is a Christian movement which stresses the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Members are known as Friends, or popularly as Quakers. It is made of independent organisations, which have split from one another due to doctrinal differences...
and became an active participant in the church. She later married Sidney Haskins, later of Philadelphia.
Judson had work exhibited at Brookgreen Gardens
Brookgreen Gardens
Brookgreen Gardens is a sculpture garden and wildlife preserve, located just south of Murrells Inlet, in South Carolina. The property includes several themed gardens with American figurative sculptures placed in them, the Lowcountry Zoo, and trails through several ecosystems in nature reserves on...
, South Carolina; the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
, Washington, D.C.; the Whitney Museum of American Art
Whitney Museum of American Art
The Whitney Museum of American Art, often referred to simply as "the Whitney", is an art museum with a focus on 20th- and 21st-century American art. Located at 945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street in New York City, the Whitney's permanent collection contains more than 18,000 works in a wide variety of...
; the Philadelphia Museum of Art
Philadelphia Museum of Art
The Philadelphia Museum of Art is among the largest art museums in the United States. It is located at the west end of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia's Fairmount Park. The Museum was established in 1876 in conjunction with the Centennial Exposition of the same year...
; the Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either...
; and the National Academy of Design
National Academy of Design
The National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, founded in New York City as the National Academy of Design – known simply as the "National Academy" – is an honorary association of American artists founded in 1825 by Samuel F. B. Morse, Asher B. Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E...
, New York City. In 1926, she was awarded an honorable mention at the Chicago Art Club.
Sculpture
- Bird GirlBird GirlBird Girl is a sculpture made in 1936 by Sylvia Shaw Judson in Lake Forest, Illinois. It achieved fame when it was featured on the cover of the 1994 novel Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. It was sculpted at Ragdale, the summer home of her family.-Details:Bird Girl is cast in bronze and...
, 1936, bronze (used on the cover of the 1994 novel Midnight in the Garden of Good and EvilMidnight in the Garden of Good and EvilMidnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is a non-fiction work by John Berendt. Published in 1994, the book was Berendt's first, and became a The New York Times bestseller for 216 weeks following its debut....
) - Mary DyerMary DyerMary Baker Dyer was an English Puritan turned Quaker who was hanged in Boston, Massachusetts Bay Colony , for repeatedly defying a Puritan law banning Quakers from the colony...
, 1959, bronze, Boston Common, BostonBostonBoston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
; Race Street Friends MeetinghouseRace Street Friends MeetinghouseThe Race Street Friends Meetinghouse is a historic and still active Quaker meetinghouse located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.The meetinghouse, at 1515 Cherry Street, served as the site of the Yearly Meeting of the Hicksite sect of the Religious Society of Friends from 1857 to 1955...
, Philadelphiahttp://www.friendscentercorp.org/about/maryDyer.php?Section=About - Rain Tree Fountain, on display at the Sterling Morton Library, Lisle, IllinoisLisle, IllinoisLisle is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 22,930 at the 2011 census, and estimated to be 23,135 as of 2008. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Illinois Technology and Research Corridor...
- Girl With Baby On Shoulder, Lake Forest, IllinoisLake Forest, IllinoisLake Forest is an affluent city located in Lake County, Illinois, United States. The city is south of Waukegan along the shore of Lake Michigan, and is a part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the North Shore. Lake Forest was founded around Lake Forest College and was laid out as a town in...
- Girl with a Squirrel, Kosciuszko Park, Milwaukee, WisconsinMilwaukee, WisconsinMilwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
(stolen in 1975) - Apple Tree Children, 1967, bronze and wood, Lake Forest LibraryLake Forest LibraryThe Lake Forest Library is the public library serving Lake Forest, Illinois. It is located at 360 E. Deerpath, Lake Forest, Illinois.-Statistics:* Registered Borrowers: 15,645 1* Annual Circulation: 465,927 items 1...
Children's Department, Lake Forest, Illinois - The Spirit of Electricity, Chicago
- Blessed Virgin and Christ Child, 1947, granite, Queen of Heaven Cemetery, Lake Forest, Illinois
- The Ballerina, 1958, Evanston Township High School, Evanston, Illinois
- Birds on Eggs, 1959, cast aluminum, Chicago Botanic Garden
- Mermaid, 1920, bronze, Chicago Botanic Garden
- Naughty Faun, 1921, Bedford stone, Chicago Botanic Garden
- Title & Date Unknown, Rosehill Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois
- The Quiet Eye: A Way of Looking at Pictures, 1982 Regnery Publishing, ISBN 0895266385
- For Gardens and Other Places, The Sculpture of Sylvia Shaw Judson
- Illustrations for Songs of a Baby's Day, To the Tune of The Very Gentle Jog. By Frances Shaw (mother), 1928
Further reading
- Sandra L. Underwood, The "Bird Girl", The Story of a Sculpture by Sylvia Shaw Judson, Schiffer Publishing, Limited, Atglen, PA, June 2006, ISBN 0764323709