43

(Ithaca, New York, ca. 1969)

Life-size Stone Sculpture of Enslaved African Man by Tito Scarponi [Abolition - Slavery - Vatican]

"Struggle for Liberation," an exceptional life-size stone sculpture by Tito Scarponi, Ithaca, New York, ca. 1969. The work depicts a male figure in chains, possibly referencing the iconic abolitionist image "Am I Not a Man and a Brother?", associated with the Society for the Abolition of the Slave Trade. Scarponi carved the sculpture in his Ithaca garage studio using a salvaged block of stone taken from a demolished building. Together with a 1969 press photograph of Scarponi with the sculpture.

Tito Scarponi was an Italian-born sculptor trained at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Rome who later worked as a stone carver for the Vatican, developing a practice grounded in classical figurative sculpture and religious tradition. He emigrated to the United States in the mid-1960s and became sculptor-in-residence and instructor at Ithaca College, after which he emerged as an active figure in the Central New York art scene. In 1969, Scarponi was awarded first prize for sculpture at the Fourth Annual Central New York Art "Open" exhibition in Syracuse for his work Struggle for Liberation.
55 x 22 x 19 in. (139.7 x 55.9 x 48.3 cm.)

  • Condition: Wear consistent with outdoor use. Losses at the base, including a broken fragment requiring restoration. See photos.

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