Lions at the gate may be old news but that doesn’t make Patience and Fortitude any less beloved by New Yorkers, or by me. Maybe its my imagination, but I actually feel safer sitting next them. Sharing your lunch hour with these beasts in front of the New York Public Library has got to be one of the great perks of living and working in NYC. The marble centenarians can thank Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia for the fitting names of Patience and Fortitude. In 1930, as American began their struggle with the great depression, LaGuardia named the lions after the qualities he thought New Yorkers would need the most to survive the downturn, 80 years later we can still use the reminder to hang on and stay strong.
Susan G. Larkin’s book, Top Cats: the life and of the New York Public Library lions offers a wonderful illustrated history of these icons and illuminated their story for me. Apparently, lions statues were all the rage in the 1890s and at the Chicago’s World Columbian Exhibition in 1893 there were eight pairs of entrance lions and a lion fountain surrounding the elaborate beaux-arts buildings.
After the exhibition, in 1894, Mrs. Henry Field paid for the recasting of two the exhibitions bronze lions, in the memory of her husband, to guard the Art Institute of Chicago’s doors. Just as New Yorkers love Patience and Fortitude, Chicagoans have grown to love and cherish these lions as symbols of their city. Edward Kemeys, the sculptor of the Chicago lions, referred to his similar, but not identical, lions as "stands in an attitude of defiance" and "on the prowl" (not exactly catchy names, but they stuck). Artie, the Art Institute’s younger, fuzzier lion mascot, explains that, “Lions as guardians have an ancient history. The fierceness, strength, and grace of the lion led the earliest human rulers to adopt it as a symbol of royalty and of guardianship. The two lions outside the Art Institute "guard" our collection of artwork and also give a sense of grandeur and royalty to the building.” Thanks for the clarity Artie!
So in 1887, when John Carrere and Thomas Hasting choose artist Edward Clark Potter to craft lions at the entrance of the library, they weren’t exactly breaking new ground, they were actually looking for ways to connect their new building with European traditions and old world aristocracy - the lions, along with many other architectural details, did the trick.
The biggest difference between the lions in NYC and Chicago is the expression and demeanor of the majestic feline faces. The Chicago lions are very realistic and detailed, they protect the museum through intimidation and threaten all those who bring ill will, they are lions after all. But in NY the lion’s expressions are endearing - they are by no means fierce or ferocious - instead they use their power to rule the library entrance with a noble benevolence. They are welcoming and benign. They aren’t guarding against threatening forces, just watching over great treasure.
Sadly, the New York lions can no longer be decorated to celebrate special occasions with the city of New York. After Patience and Fortitude were cleaned and restored in 2004 (they are carved from Tennessee marble) the conservators concluded that the practice of decorating them was actually damaging them and the practice was discontinued. Bronze is a difference matter, so out in Chicago Defiance and Prowl happily don wreaths, football helmets and baseball caps to celebrate special occasions (there is even an annual “wreathing of the lions” event each year at the Art Institute).
It’s funny how something as simple as lion sculptures can unite a city...maybe we should invite some upstate, or do you think they’d eat the buffalo?
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