Hermon Atkins MacNeil

Hermon Atkins MacNeil was an American sculptor known for bronze sculptures of Native Americans and designs for national monuments, commemorative works, and medals. MacNeil focused on portraying truly American subjects and introducing them to the art world.
MacNeil was born in Evertt, Massachusetts, on February 27, 1866, and attended art school in Boston. He then attended the École des Beaux-Arts and the Academie Julian in Paris. In 1891 he returned to the United States and worked with Philip Martiny on the sculptures on buildings for the Columbian Exposition in Chicago. He taught at the Art Institute of Chicago for the next three years, and during this time, he became interested in the American West and Native Americans. He took a long trip out west to study the local tribes. This trip served as inspiration for many of his sculptures, and he focused on Native American subjects for the next decade of his career, even while living in Rome from 1896-1899. While in Rome, he created one of his most well-known works, “The Sun Vow” which won a Silver Medal at the Paris Exposition in 1900. By 1910, his career became focused on public monuments, and he created one of his most well-known designs, the Standing Liberty quarter which was minted from 1916-1930. MacNeil’s designs of monuments and coins allowed his work to be widely distributed throughout his career. MacNeil died in New York City on October 2, 1947. Today, his works are held in prominent collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Art Institute of Chicago.

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