See the magnificent
bas relief on the campus of Virginia
Union University now being restored and
preserved by sculptor James Robertson.
The bas relief is on the exterior of
the Belgian Friendship Building, the
work of Belgian sculptors Puvrez and
Jespers.
The Belgian Building
is the Belgian Pavilion of the 1939 New
York
Worlds Fair and was sent to Richmond
in 1941. The restoration project
is funded by Bells for Peace, Inc in
partnership
with Virginia Union University.
James Robertson, 34
Sculptor and Mason (Style Magazine October
15, 2013)
James Robertson’s
introduction to sculpting was born out
of a tragedy. At 17, when one of his friends
at James River High School in Midlothian
died, Robertson instinctively turned to
the format to create a memorial.
“It just kind of blossomed
organically,” he says, “this
idea of making a sculpture.”
Since
then, he’s slowly built
a reputation in the art form, becoming
the young face of sculpture in a
city full of monuments to the past.
His
efforts help make memories live
on. He’s worked on some of
Richmond’s most high-profile
monuments, including the Robert E.
Lee statue on Monument Avenue. He
spent four years as a member of a
three-man team that rebuilt and restored
the Indian Pavilion in the Virginia
Museum of Fine Arts’ East Asian
collection. On the campus of Virginia
Union University, he’s in the
midst of restoring the largest terra-cotta
relief sculpture made in the last
2,500 years, a piece called “Belgians
at Work.”
He
also creates original pieces. He
recently collaborated with Paul
DiPasquale on a memorial for fallen
police officers in Virginia Beach.
He donates time and services to VMFA,
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden and
Art on Wheels. And he’s working
on a service project in which veterans
will make art with an ancient Roman
siege warfare weapon by firing sculpted
objects into clay.
“I think that volunteering
at all is the greatest way to expand
your own knowledge of your craft
and your knowledge of your community,” he
says. “Plus, I’m addicted
to having my hands dirty.”
A
TRIBUTE IN LIGHTS: Veterans Day,
November 11, 2013
Bells
For Peace, Inc with Virginia Union
University (VUU) lights the Robert
L.Vann Memorial Tower of the Belgian
Friendship Building, Veterans Day,
November 11, 2013 as its
new tower bells chime. Once dark
and silent against the Richmond
skyline, the majestic 161’ tower
will be a tribute to veterans of
all colors and creeds who were
processed in the Belgian Building
for WWII; and to all who have served
in America’s foreign wars.
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