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"Mountain Muir" - Sculpture of John Muir

by William James Pettee


This limited editon sculpture was installed in 2011 at the Holt Atherton Library at University of the Pacific. The sculpture was funded by Congressman Jerry McNerney (CA-11th) and writer Martin Cheek (co-authors of Clean Energy Nation: Freeing America from the Tyranny of Fossil Fuels
Mountain Muir - Sculpture 1 of 2 of John Muir by William James Pettee, 2010

Four John Muir sculptures and busts available for purchase from sculptor Will Pettee.

Small-scale busts from the same sculptor are also available for your home: WJP Studios John Muir Collection.

About the Sculpture

Title: Mountain Muir

Artist: Will Pettee

Dimensions: (with marble base) 18” tall x 9” wide x 13” long

Material: Bronze from Lost Wax casting

Type of edition: Limited

Number of pieces in edition: 21
Upon completion of the edition, the mold will be destroyed. There will be no further editions made of this image.

 

The Idea

The sculptor, William Pettee, explains his inspiration for creating this sculpture as follows:

Yosemite has been one of my favorite destinations since I was a child, and as homage to Mr. Muir, I felt inspired to sculpt him in bronze at that wondrous location. The statue is intended to picture Mr. Muir as he stands upon a cliff edge and looks out over the wonders of Yosemite Valley.

It was after my first climb to the top of Half Dome with my wife, that I settled into what I felt would best represent John Muir. As I stood atop that high granite formation above the valley floor, I could only imagine how he would have felt being one of the first visitors to view the valley from this high vista. His pose wasn’t based on any photo or the like, but rather on my own stance as I viewed the breathtaking magic that is Yosemite Valley.

When I had the piece cast in bronze, the foundry asked me about the edition number. At the time, I had originally intended it to be a one of a kind, but I thought there might be more people in the world who, like me, wanted to be reminded of John Muir daily; who wanted a tribute that said something about who they wanted to be associated with; a tribute that could spark conversation about the efforts and rewards earned for us all by this great man. So I decided on a limited edition of 21 pieces…yes, John Muir's birthday.

Contact:

Will & Karen Pettee
WJP Studios:
(650) 366-7929 or Mobile: (650) 722-2088
Website: wjpstudios.com
email:Wjpettee1@aol.com

See also:

Nature's Prophet - Sculpture 2 of 2 by William Pettee

The Visionary - John Muir at Age 34 (1872) - Bust 1 of 2 by William Pettee

The Inspiration - John Muir at Age 52 (1890) - Bust 2 of 2 by William Pettee


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