Professor's sculpture to be unveiled at U.S. Capitol

J. Brett Grill won a national contest for his sculpture of former President Gerald Ford.

By Brendan Gibbons

Published Nov. 6, 2008

Art professor J. Brett Grill has dozens of Fords in his studio, but only one of them was selected to be street-legal.

A selection committee of the Gerald R. Ford Foundation chose Grill to become a presidential portrait artist in fall 2009. His bronze sculpture of former President Ford will be unveiled at the Rotunda in front of the U.S. Capitol, according to an art department news release.

The sculpture will be included in the National Statuary Hall Collection, the release stated.

Grill said the oil-based sculpture the committee selected took three months to produce. He said the bronze sculpture will take eight to 10 months and is tentatively scheduled to be unveiled next fall.

Grill, a drawing and painting instructor, said he was surprised the selection committee chose him because of his training in other mediums.

"It was strange because sculpture is a secondary thing to me," Grill said. "The students were dumbfounded, but in order to be successful an artist needs to be adaptable."

Art professor William Hawk said Grill has been a positive addition to the fine arts program since he first started teaching three years ago.

"He's probably one of the best colleagues," Hawk said. "He's one of those guys who is super bright, very energetic and works hard for his students and his art."

Grill said he prepared for the competition by researching biographical information about Ford and by viewing hundreds of photos to determine how best to sculpt the former president.

"It's amazing how much time he spends in the studio to get things done," Hawk said. "If you go by late at night, you see the lights glowing from his studio."

According to the news release, the Ford's son agreed. As a member of the selection committee, Steven Ford reviewed the models and pointed to Grill's as the one with the most resemblance.

"That's my dad," Steven Ford said in the release.

Grill said he chose the particular pose of Ford for the figure because it is "emblematic" of Ford's time in office. The pose looks like Ford was standing as if just out of a chair.

"He was one of our only unelected presidents," Grill said. "When his country called, he stood up and led. I didn't want it to seem heroic at all."