Goddess, Heroine, Beast

By Anne Higgonet


Published on occasion of the exhibition Goddess, Heroine, Beast: Anna Hyatt Huntington's New York Sculpture, 1902–1936, this exhibition catalogue celebrates the life and work of New York City sculptor, Anna Hyatt Huntington (1876–1973). Hyatt Huntington's work is displayed in many of New York's leading institutions and outdoor spaces, including Columbia University, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Academy of Design, the New-York Historical Society, the Hispanic Society, the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Central Park, Riverside Park, and the Bronx Zoo. Despite the presence of her sculptures throughout the city, Hyatt Huntington is not well-recognized today. This publication aims to redress that by focusing on her noted New York career, including  the first public monument in New York City by a woman: her Joan of Arc on Riverside Drive and 93rd street. Over thirteen feet high, her martial equestrian heroine, clad in armor from head to toe and cast in bronze, was also the city's first public monument to a historical woman. Meanwhile, Hyatt Huntington had become famous for her animal sculptures that combined ferocious spirit with skillful realism, many of which are included in this exhibition catalogue.