Rushmore Borglum Story Exhibit
Gutzon Borglum was born in Idaho in 1867. He was the son of Danish Mormons and his education included the study of art in Paris. Prior to beginning this labor of love and patriotism, Borglum sculpted a remodeled torch for the Statue of Liberty, saints and apostles for the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York, a seated Lincoln in Newark, N.J., and an oversized Lincoln bust for the U.S. Capitol.
Borglum chose this location himself based on the mountain's broad wall of granite which faced toward the southeast and thus received direct sunlight for the majority of the day. He envisioned a memorial to commemorate "the foundation, preservation, and continental expansion of the United States."
The memorial was dedicated by President Calvin Coolidge when work began in 1927. Although it took 14 years to complete, the actual carving on the granite face of the mountain took only 6 ½ years. The main issue to complete this work was money. Borglum personally lobbied all branches of the local, state and federal governments to keep this project alive. When the dollars were tallied up, it was shown that $826,000 of federal money was channeled to the total cost of nearly $1 million. Most of this due to Borglum's efforts.
One of the exhibits at the National Park is an on-site studio built by sculptor Gutzon Borglum. The exhibit displays Borglum's methods and shows his original plaster models and tools. While many Americans are familiar with the faces of the four presidents carved into Mount Rushmore, not many realize that the sculpture, as originally envisioned, is incomplete. Sculptor Gutzon Borglum initially hoped for the sculptures to extend to the waist, showing the presidents' suit jackets and hands. A model of Borglum's intentions can be seen in the visitors center. An interesting side note is that, had the presidents been carved in total, they would stand approximately 465 feet tall. In addition there are two 125 seat theaters where visitors can view a 13-minute movie about how and why the memorial was carved. These theaters are known as the Lincoln Borglum museum in memory of the sculptor and one of the presidents that he admired.
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