Timeline: Creating the statue

Artist Haiying Wu’s design process begins with a drawing. He then moves through several phases of models before designing the full-scale statue. When the full-scale statue is complete, it will be cast in bronze and sent to Statuary Hall in Washington, D.C.

 

 

 

January, 2023

 

Haiying Wu presents his concept

Artist Haiying Wu presented a concept drawing (pictured) to the Billy Frank Jr. National Statuary Hall Selection Committee, who chose Haiying for the project on the strength of his concept.

The Committee felt that Haiying’s proposal captured Billy Frank Jr.’s warmth and personality through his smile and posture, in addition to important details such as regalia, leaping salmon, and his placement seated by the riverside.

May, 2023

 

Small-scale model

Haiying began by sculpting a small-scale model (above) to understand the proportions, gesture, and the arrangement of the different elements.

October, 2023

 

The maquette

Haiying next built a “maquette” (below, center), a larger model that can explore finer details in the statue. He used armature (below, left) to understand the figure’s gesture at a larger scale. The maquette must next be approved by the Architect of the Capitol before being developed into a full-scale clay statue, which will then be cast in bronze.

March 2024

 

The Architect of the Capitol approves the maquette design.

TBD 2024

 

Haiying Wu completes the full-scale statue.

TBD 2024/2025

 

The full-scale statue is cast in bronze.

TBD 2025

 

The final statue is installed in Statuary Hall in Washington, D.C.

 

News & updates


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Project update: September

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