Sculptor and adjunct Assistant Professor John Belardo, a member of the Art Department faculty since 2000, spoke with host of the "Sculpture Vulture" podcast Lucy Branch about a family of Italian stone carvers whose works include statues, monuments, and buildings across the City, the country, and the globe.
Belardo is writing a book about the Piccirilli Brothers, who immigrated to The Bronx from Italy in 1888 and were instrumental in creating landmarks like the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Square Arch. Working closely with sculptors of these and other monuments, the brothers painstakingly "translated" their works from plaster casts into durable stone. The brothers also created notable works of their own, including the USS Maine National Monument in Columbus Circle.