The Final Piece of the National World War I Memorial Is Almost Finished

“A Soldier’s Journey,” the 58-foot-long bronze sculpture created by Sabin Howard, will be unveiled in Washington, D.C. on September 13

A memorial honoring the millions of Americans who served in World War I is taking shape in Washington, D.C. Last month, crews began assembling the 58-foot-long bronze sculpture that will serve as the centerpiece of the new National World War I Memorial on the National Mall.

For now, A Soldier’s Journey is shrouded in black plastic and protected by fences, according to the Washington Post’s Michael E. Ruane and Katie Shepherd. But after an unveiling ceremony on September 13, visitors will be able to admire the ten-foot-tall tableau created by sculptor Sabin Howard.

The new $44 million memorial is located in Pershing Park across from the White House Visitor Center. The 1.76-acre site was designed by architect Joe Weishaar, who won an international competition to create the memorial.

The sculpture, which is meant to be viewed from left to right, depicts 38 figures protruding from the background. These figures are featured in vivid scenes that tell the story of America’s involvement in the war, such as a daughter handing her father a helmet and nurses helping wounded soldiers.

“I’m hoping to make something that lets a kid, when he’s walking along the wall, experience it like it’s a movie in bronze,” Howard told Smithsonian magazine’s Jeff MacGregor in 2022. “The scenes are changing. And the kid goes home and he’s like, ‘Oh my God, I got to see what World War I was all about.’ And he gets the idea that we’re on a journey—each and every one of us.”

Initial plans called for a much larger sculpture—one that stretched 324 feet long—but the idea evolved over the past decade. It’s still expected to be the largest free-standing bronze relief in the Western Hemisphere.

To make the piece, Howard studied images and paintings depicting the war. Then, he recruited models to help make the sculpture as life-like as possible. Some donned soldiers’ uniforms and military equipment, while others wore historical nurses’ uniforms.

Howard and the models traveled to Britain to work in a high-tech studio outfitted with a photogrammetry rig, which consisted of 160 cameras arranged in a circle. From the photos and measurements, he created final sketches, a 3-D digital rendering, a maquette and, finally, a full-size steel-framed foam armature. The armature, made in England, was shipped to Howard’s studio in New Jersey, where he applied the clay.

When he finished sculpting in clay, he sent the piece to England to be cast in bronze at the Pangolin Editions foundry, which was a “monumental effort,” as foundry director Rungwe Kingdon tells BBC News’ Clara Bullock and Audrey Dias. “You can’t do it at half the intensity that the artist does it—you have to match.”

Read the entire article on the Smithsonian Magazine website.
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