Air Force Memorial Spotlight on:ZENOS FRUDAKIS

What other sculptures are you mentioned that he was being considered known for? to do a sculpture for the Air Force. He One highlight of our magni cent Air I think the golfer Payne Stewart had an idea for a piece that he might Force Memorial in Arlington, Va., is the sculpture at Pinehurst Resort in North like to do, but the Air Force Memorial Honor Guard sculpture at the south end Carolina with the US Open, and a Bobby Foundation speci cally wanted an Honor of the Memorial Plaza. I often witness Jones sculpture that I did for the US Guard piece. He didn’t have the time to visitors proudly standing in front of the Golf Association at the Georgia Golf take on this project so he referred me to sculpture, rendering a hand salute or Hall of Fame in Augusta. I think I am Pete Lindquist, the memorial’s former posing for a picture. best known for Freedom, a sculpture in managing director, and someone else. I When I give tours, I like to tell visitors Philadelphia. It has four gures like the showed them my portfolio of work, which that the Honor Guard “vigilantly stands Air Force Memorial sculpture, but these they immediately liked and said that it watch over our memorial, both day and are sketchy gures.  is piece comes was just as advertised by Mr. Hart.  ey night.” In my view, the sculpture depicts from an important idea that I had about asked me to do a small model of what I military excellence, pride, and strength. freedom and the struggle for freedom. It thought the Honor Guard statue would I thought it would be interesting is one gure going through four motions. look like, and then they formally invited to know a little more about the man How did you become involved with me to do the project, which took about who created this beautiful work, so I the Honor Guard project? ve years, from 2002 to 2006. spoke with 63-year-old sculptor Ze- A sculptor friend of mine who has What was the most di cult part of nos Frudakis, who lives and operates since passed away, Frederick Hart, had completing the sculpture? his studio in Glenside, Pa., north of done a work called  e  ree Soldiers for  e details. Usually with a sculpture, Philadelphia. He has been a sculptor the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the you are not trying to create something for four decades. National Mall in Washington, D.C. He exactly. I actually said to someone, ‘I Photo by Rosalie Frudakis Rosalie by Photo

Frudakis molds the visage of the one of the Honor Guard fi gures based on the face of MSgt. William Diaz.

34 Wingman Magazine ︱ January 2015 By Barbara S. Taylor

The Air Force Memorial is free to visit and open every day of the year except Christmas ZENOS FRUDAKIS Day. For more details, see www.airforce- memorial.org. Photo by Tsuyoshi Tung Tsuyoshi by Photo Photo by Rosalie Frudakis Rosalie by Photo

Left: Zenos Frudakis spent five years perfecting the Honor Guard sculpture. Here, he stands next to the Honor Guard figures in his Glenside, Pa., studio am not a tailor, I am a sculptor.’ ere be at least one woman involved and in 2005. Above: The Honor Guard was such extreme detail involved, and people of color: an African-American sculpture as it stands today at the Air Force Memorial in Arlington, Va. I wanted historical accuracy. It is very and maybe a Hispanic and a white air- important to me and something that I go man. is ultimately was the composi- after in all my pieces. With this piece, we tion. I used airmen from the Honor they were more prominent. I had to have frequently had the Honor Guard tailor Guard at Bolling and from Naval Air them sticking out. That was all very visit the studio to check the length of Station Joint Reserve Base Willow Grove challenging. I also really liked working the sleeves and the buttons on the coats near Philadelphia as models. on the faces and getting to know the and the medals and everything. I did What was it like working with people who were posing. I enjoyed the

Photo by Rosalie Frudakis Rosalie by Photo not want it to look like four mannequin members of the Honor Guard? human, face-to-face interaction.  gures exhibiting uniforms. I tried to get They were wonderful! They were What are you working on now? as much life as I could into the  gures. very, very easy to work with. They I just  nished a large work in bronze I did not want the uniforms to be what were disciplined. They were always called Knowledge Is Power for Rowan the people saw. Although I know that courteous. They were ideal. They were University in Glassboro, N.J. It is an idea was a big part of it, I wanted them to terrific. Pete Lindquist was actually one that I came up with based on a quote see the humanity: the people. at’s of the greatest pleasures of this project, from Francis Bacon, the scientist and what matters. too. He was so easy to work with and philosopher. e client called and said to What was the composition of the facilitated everything. He kept a lot of do something about knowledge is power, Honor Guard? it together. so I created a large book. % I went to Bolling Air Force Base in What is your favorite part of the Washington, D.C., met several Honor sculpture? Barbara S. Taylor is the director of the Guard members. I wanted a variety Those flags and campaign streamers. Air Force Memorial. in the  gures and mentioned that in That was extremely challenging to get For more on Frudakis and his a meeting. I said you want to have a the streamers in order and to have certain sculptures, visit his offi cial website: an all-inclusive project; there should ones show up more than others because www.zenosfrudakis.com.

Wingman Magazine︱ January 2015 35