Armand LaMontagne

Armand LaMontagne (born 1939) ranks as one of America's pre-eminent sculptors of celebrated personalities.[1]

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Education

LaMontagne is a graduate of Worcester Academy and Boston College. He is a self-taught artist who has honed his skills through practicing his profession.

Body of work

He is best recognized for his life-size wood and bronze sculptures. His significant sculptures of important personalities are sited at The Baseball Hall of Fame, Cooperstown, New York; the New England Sports Museum, Boston, Massachusetts; the Patton Museum of Cavalry and Armor, Fort Knox, Kentucky; and the Basketball Hall of Fame, Springfield, Massachusetts

LaMontagne's talents were brought to the national spotlight in the 1970s when he deliberately made a reproduction of a 17th century turned oak Brewster Chair (an iconic Pilgrim chair) to embarrass the "experts".[2] LaMontagne even soaked the chair in salt water to simulate aging. LaMontagne then gave the chair away. Eventually, the Henry Ford Museum purchased the "fake" from a dealer for $9,000. The museum was later notified of their error, when LaMontagne published an admission in the Providence Journal.

LaMontagne has also hand built an authentic 17th-century Rhode Island house called a stone-ender in Scituate, Rhode Island.

References

  1. ^ Craft in America: Celebrating the Creative Work of the HandBy Phyllis George (Summit Group, 1993) http://books.google.com/books?id=b78AMJ92So4C&source=gbs_navlinks_s
  2. ^ "The Brewster Chair and the game of "Fool The Experts"". Henry Ford Museum. April 1, 2000. http://www.thehenryford.org/exhibits/pic/2000/00apr.asp. Retrieved 20 October 2010. 

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