1992.B.50 Hiram Powers, Faith | DMA Staging Content Management System

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

As early as 1852, Rhode Island businessman Marshall Woods requested from Hiram Powers a pair of busts modeled on the classical ideal. For unknown reasons, Powers did not fulfill Woods original request. The client persisted and fourteen years later Powers finally agreed to the commission as long as it was for three statues. The subjects chosen were modeled on the Christian theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity, which derive from the New Testament verse of 1 Corinthians 13:13: “And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.” Acting on the significance given to charity in the biblical framework, Power’s conception of the group had Faith and Hope as the flanking works and Charity elevated at the center of the triad. Each bust was distinguished from the other through both posture and the use of traditional symbols for their character. The original bust of Faith was the second of the trio to be completed in the summer of 1866. Here, she wears a tiara bearing the Greek cross, and her skyward gaze implies that her confidence is derived from heaven above.

Recognized today as the most important American sculptor of neoclassical subjects of his time, Powers was also the first sculptor from the United States to achieve international fame, based in great part on the success of his statue the The Greek Slave.

Excerpt from

Sue Canterbury, DMA label text, 2012

NOTES

c. 1866-1867

According to Hiram Powers Vermont Sculptor, 1805-1873 Volume II Catalogue of Works Richard P. Wunder--p. 144

"The bust of Faith was modeled during 1866 and 1867 and was finished in August 1867."

Catalogue essays

Collectors of Personal Vision: Faith P. and Charles L. Bybee

Artist/designers

Powers, Hiram (American, 1805-1873)

Cultures

Geography

Process/materials

Marble

Historical periods

Individuals

Subject terms

RELATED OBJECTS

PROVENANCE

From 1992: Dallas Museum of Art, The Faith P. and Charles L. Bybee Collection, gift of Faith P. Bybee

AUDIO ASSETS

VIDEO ASSETS

IMAGE ASSETS

WEB RESOURCES

Hiram Powers, Faith, SAAM~Check out another copy of this bust at the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
Greek Slave: The Washington, D.C. Legacy of Hiram Powers' 1840s Masterpiece~Read Evan J. Berkowitz's Smithsonian Insider blog post about the placement and recent 3-D printed replica of this sculpture.

ARCHIVAL RESOURCES

FUN FACTS

TEACHING IDEAS

RULES

Apply to objects where number equals 1992.B.50

General Description

As early as 1852, Rhode Island businessman Marshall Woods requested from Hiram Powers a pair of busts modeled on the classical ideal. For unknown reasons, Powers did not fulfill Woods original request. The client persisted and fourteen years later Powers finally agreed to the commission as long as it was for three statues. The subjects chosen were modeled on the Christian theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity, which derive from the New Testament verse of 1 Corinthians 13:13: “And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.” Acting on the significance given to charity in the biblical framework, Power’s conception of the group had Faith and Hope as the flanking works and Charity elevated at the center of the triad. Each bust was distinguished from the other through both posture and the use of traditional symbols for their character. The original bust of Faith was the second of the trio to be completed in the summer of 1866. Here, she wears a tiara bearing the Greek cross, and her skyward gaze implies that her confidence is derived from heaven above.