ROGERS GROUP HARD PLASTER SCULPTURE 'WEIGHING THE BABY' - 1876

"WEIGHING THE BABY" HARD FORM PLASTER SCULPTURE BY THE JOHN ROGERS GROUP, NEW CANAAN, CT - 1876. 21"H x 16"W x 12"D.
 
John Rogers' (1829-1904) human touch and sense of humor made him one of the most prominent and popular artist of his time. His body-of-work helped introduce the Realist Art Style in America. Rogers was a member of the National Academy of Design and exhibited there annually for nearly 30 years; his work was displayed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and in their catalogue; his extant collection is owned by the New York Historical Society. Rogers' studio has been designated a National Historic Landmark. John Rogers is credited with being a pioneer in the making of elastic molds for works of art. He patented many of his works, displaying the dates on the base of the sculptures. William Cullen Bryant wrote this to Fogers in 1869: "You have succeeded to a higher degree than almost any artist of any age in making sculpture a narrative art, giving motionless and speechless figures the power to relate their own adventures." Source: John Rogers: The People's Sculptor by David H. Wallace.