Henry Merwin Shrady

United States, 1871 - 1922

Place of BirthUnited States of America

Place of DeathUnited States of America

BiographyHenry Shrady studied law at Columbia University and worked at the Continental Match Corporation. He did not receive a formal art training but taught himself by sketching animals, especially moose and buffalo at the Bronx Zoo, puppies and kittens at the pet shop, and his own pets at home. After the match company failed, Shrady pursued sculpture full time. He used his own horse as a model, soaking him in water in order to observe and sketch the animal's movements and muscle structure. His friend, Alan Southworth, photographed one of Shrady's horse models and published it as an engraving. A representative from the Gorham Silver Company, specializing in Russian bronzes at that time, was impressed by the engraving and offered to cast the model. Gorham continued to cast and exhibit many of Shrady's animal models. In 1902, Shrady won the $250,000 commission for the Appomattox Memorial Monument to General Ulysses S. Grant and devoted the rest of his career to its completion. In the National Museum of Wildlife Art's Fighting Bison, Shrady conveys a vivid sense of movement and action. The sculpture, depicting two colliding bison, exhibits Shrady's skill at modeling highly realistic, detailed animals.
Shrady was a member of the National Sculpture Society, the National Academy of Design, and the National Institute of Arts and Letters. His work is recognized in many private collections and museums, including the National Gallery of Art, the Gilcrease Museum, the New York Graphic Society, the Rockwell Museum, the Buffalo Bill Historical Society, and the National Museum of Wildlife Art.

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