Model to Monument
Model to Monument (M2M) is a partnership with the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. Since 2010, M2M has trained a diverse, international group of 49 League artists in the process of creating large-scale sculpture for outdoor public spaces under the guidance of master sculptor Greg Wyatt, resident artist at the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine in Manhattan.
The M2M program is for advanced sculpture students who have been attending the League for a minimum of 16 months. Candidates must be nominated by League sculpture instructors. Design, engineering, fabrication and installation take place over nine months. Completed works are exhibited in New York City parks for about one year and viewed by about 200,000 park visitors.
In the 2016-2017 M2M exhibition, sculptors Aaron Bell, Sheila Berger, James Emerson, Tanda Francis, Markus Rudolph Holtby, Sarah Thompson Moore, and Shiho Sato explore the theme of “The Public Square” in Riverside Park South, offering “an interpretation of the ancient idea of the public square as a locus of communal themes and discourse,” as described by writer Michael D. Rips. A collaborative piece in Van Cortlandt Park, …and We Breathe, explores the theme of air. For the 2017-2018 exhibition, monuments will be installed in Riverside Park North at 145th Street.
The importance of the program is underscored by Mr. Wyatt: “The artist’s work enters the world. It’s a huge experience for the artist, with a spiritual dimension. They have to achieve a delicate balance between their private aesthetics and their public constituency. It expands their creativity.”
View a map of this year’s sculptures at Riverside Park South.
Thank You to Our Sponsors
We gratefully acknowledge leadership support for Model to Monument from the Dr. Lawrence Spielberger & Dr. Greta Spanierman Family Foundation. M2M is also made possible with the major support of Ludmila Schwartzenberg Bidwell, Susan Dryfoos and Kathleen H. Seidel, and with public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. Additional support is also provided by the Brigitte and William Crovello Foundation Inc.
For more information, email m2m@artstudentsleague.org. To support the program, please contact Jennifer Solomon, Chief Development Office, at 212-247-4510, ext. 161, or jsolomon@artstudentsleague.org.