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View Full Version : Peter Toth's "Whispering Giants"


sparker1
4th of May 2005 (Wed), 21:01
Peter Toth is a Hungarian emigrant whose family escaped from Hungary just before the Communist takeover in 1956. He was 9 years old. In the US, he developed a strong empathy for American Indians, possibly because of his own experience with oppression. In 1968, the 21 year old Toth began a series of sculptures to honor the American Indian. The first, in California, was sculpted from stone. Over the next 21 years, he sculpted 66 more memorials, at least one in every state, all of wood. For his efforts, he has been given the Indian name "Wolf". His first sculpture in any state was without commission, but I'm told he did accept commissions for subsequent works.

Traveling around the country, my wife and I enjoy scouting out his sculptures. This thread will present photos of a few of them. The first is located in Valdez, Alaska, outside a college dorm. The second is in Mandan, ND, near Bismarck. It is relegated to a crummy location outside a tavern and behind a power pole (making it difficult to photograph cleanly) in an industrial section of town. Another (no photo) in Aberdeen, SD was rotting in the parking lot of a Burger King, but was eventually moved indoors (warehouse) to prevent further rot. I was told an appointment could be made to see it, but i declined.

mrclark321
4th of May 2005 (Wed), 21:05
Very nice, interesting history!

Dan

sparker1
4th of May 2005 (Wed), 21:16
The next Whispering Giant is located in Red Lodge, Montana, in a place of honor near the city limits. It is in a well-maintained park for all to see in the best light.

The last photo is of the sculpture in Punta Gorda, Florida. This is the first one I became aware of, since we lived in Punta Gorda for 7 years. It is in the Parking lot of a riverfront hotel, which was unfortunately destroyed by Hurricane Charley last August. The sculpture shows some damage from the storm, and its fenced area hasn't been maintained recently. This sculpture is unique because one side is the face of a brave, the other an Indian maiden. Above the head(s), an eagle, a bison and a bear appear as though being dreamed by the Indian(s). I understand it will be repaired and moved to a place of honor soon.

kilowat
15th of January 2006 (Sun), 21:25
have you lost this one sparker1 they need to be joined