Olin Levi Warner (American, 1844 to 1896)
A notable medallist and one of the first sculptors to bring the Beaux-Arts style to the attention of the American public, Warner was born to a Methodist minister in 1844 in Suffield, Connecticut. He grew up in New York and Vermont, eventually making enough money as a telegraph operator to move to Paris in 1869 where he studied sculpture at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts and worked as an assistant for Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux. When he returned to the U.S. three years later, he brought with him the French Beaux-Arts style.
Although he struggled at first, a portrait bust of art dealer Daniel Cottier brought Warner valuable recognition in 1876. In 1881, he created The Dancing Nymph, which was widely praised after it was shown at an annual exhibition of the Society of American Artists. Warner’s knowledge of anatomy and the classical spirit of his work were applauded even before the work was completed. Under “Notes of the Fine Arts,” the New York Times on 28 January 1881 reported his progress on the work. “There is not the slightest attempt, by drapery or accessory of any kind, to avoid the difficult problems of anatomy, pose, outline, and balance which such a subject insists upon having solved. Mr. Warner has imparted to his statuette great purity and nobility of expression.”
Warner’s later works include the design for the Columbian Exposition half-dollar, public works for state houses and portrait medallions of many of the important Indian Chiefs of the Great Plains and the Northwest. His last commission was to design the bronze doors for the Library of Congress. Unfortunately, the artist met an untimely end in 1896, when he was killed in a bicycle accident, having completed only one of the doors.
Information courtesy of Sotheby’s, September 2008.