Sculpture played a significant role in the education of the girls at National Park Seminary. It not only broadened their exposure to an important art form, the sculpture also taught them the cultural history behind the individual pieces.
During the height of the school years, more than 100 statues graced the campus grounds and building exteriors. Today, fewer than half remain, and several of those are badly damaged or in pieces. The preservation of the remaining sculpture has been one of the major goals of Save Our Seminary since 2010. Either by raising funds to hire professional conservators or with volunteers cleaning the stained statues, SOS has restored or preserved more than half of the surviving individual pieces of sculpture.
Since establishing a master list of all the existing outdoor sculpture at NPS, the SOS Sculpture Committee has conducted an annual inspection of each piece to determine its condition and prioritize the need for repair, cleaning, or restoration. The sculptural materials include marble, cast stone, zinc, bronze, and cast iron, each of which require specific knowledge and skill to restore or preserve. SOS works with professionals to determine the best way to preserve the sculpture to once again bring their beauty back to the cultural landscape of NPS.
So that the public can understand and appreciate these many pieces of sculpture, SOS has held special tours of the outdoor sculpture which included the cultural significance of each piece and has also given presentations on the statues at NPS.
Sculpture restoration is an expensive process. Your donation to help SOS rescue these statues would be greatly appreciated.