Ernest Wise Keyser Explained

Ernest Wise Keyser
Birth Date:10 December 1876
Birth Place:Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Death Place:Rome
Field:sculptor
Spouse:Beatrice Oberndorf (1886-1960)
Relatives:Ephraim Keyser (uncle)
Children:1

Ernest Wise Keyser (1876-1959) was an American sculptor born in Baltimore, Maryland on December 10, 1876. He studied at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore and at the Art Students League in New York City[1] and at the Académie Julian and with Denys Puech in Paris.[2]

Robert J. Collier, publisher of Collier's Weekly magazine and president of the Aero Club of America, commissioned Keyser to make the 525lb Aero Club of America Trophy in 1911.[3] [4] Renamed the Robert J. Collier Trophy in 1922 this annual aviation award administered by the U.S. National Aeronautic Association (NAA),[3] presented to those who have made "the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America, with respect to improving the performance, efficiency, and safety of air or space vehicles, the value of which has been thoroughly demonstrated by actual use during the preceding year."

Keyser was a member of the National Sculpture Society and died in Rome on September 25, 1959.[5]

His uncle, Ephraim Keyser, was also a sculptor.

Notes and References

  1. National Sculpture Society, Contemporary American Sculpture 1929, National Sculpture Society, New York, NY 1929 p178
  2. Proske, Beatrice Gilman, Brookgreen Gardens Sculpture, Brookgreen Gardens, South Carolina, 1968 p. 301
  3. Web site: Collier Trophy . NAA.aero . NAA . 23 July 2020.
  4. News: Taft Believes in Aeroplanes; Other "Bird" News. The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, Maryland. February 4, 1912. 15. Newspapers.com.
  5. Proske, Beatrice Gilman, Brookgreen Gardens Sculpture, Brookgreen Gardens, South Carolina, 1968 p. 302