Henry J. Heinz Memorial Statue
Object number2018.126.1
Artist
Emil Fuchs
(American, 1866 - 1929)
Date1921
OriginNew York City, New York
MediumBronze
Credit LineGift of Kraft Heinz Company
DescriptionBronze, full body statue of a man. The figure is attached to a rectangular-shaped base and shows a man wearing a three piece suit. The figure has his right leg stepped slightly in front with a small bend in the knee, and the toes of the right foot are hanging off the front of the base. The figure's right hand is resting on a pedestal on the right side of the base, and the figure's left hand is holding the left side of his suit jacket back with his thumb in his pant's pocket. Figure's head and body are facing straight ahead, not smiling. Top of the head is bald with a thick fringe of hair around the sides that connects to a full mustache. Three piece suit consists of an unbuttoned suit jacket, fully buttoned vest, and suit pants. Figure is wearing a tie and shirt with a straight band collar; pocket watch and chain attached to vest. Figure is wearing dress shoes. Texture of the bronze is not smooth and has both raised and depressed areas throughout the surface. Base is signed and dated with raised text on the front, left side of the base.DimensionsHeight x Width x Depth (approximate): 79 x 33.75 x 26 in. (200.7 x 85.7 x 66 cm)SignedArtist name and date in raised text on proper left side of base, near the front, "EMIL FUCHS / 1921".
Historical NotesThis statue of H.J. Heinz was sculpted by Emil Fuchs (1866-1929) in 1921 and produced at Roman Bronze Works in New York. Emil Fuchs was an Austrian sculptor and painter that was trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna and the Prussian Academy of Arts in Berlin. He went on to become a popular artist in London and New York and was known for his portraits. Fuchs was commissioned by employees of the H. J. Heinz Company to complete the sculpture after H. J. Heinz's death in 1919, and it was unveiled on what would have been Heinz's 80th birthday, October 11, 1924. More than 10,000 employees in 62 cities around the United States, Canada, and England celebrated the occasion by attending dinner parties and listening to an address from the White House and speeches in Pittsburgh. The statue was placed in a rotunda located at the H. J. Heinz Company's administrative building in Pittsburgh's North Side neighborhood.
Related person
Henry John Heinz
(1844 - 1919)
Previous owner
H. J. Heinz Company
(founded 1888)
Related institution
Roman Bronze Works
On View
On view
2005
1895-1978
Mervin Allen Corning
Thomas Hudson
