Replica of Allentown’s Martin Luther and Coretta Scott King Memorial Statue on display at Muhlenberg College’s Trexler Library
Muhlenberg College’s Trexler Library, in conjunction with the Martin Luther and Coretta Scott King Memorial Project of the Lehigh Valley Inc., will display a replica of the Martin Luther and Coretta Scott King Memorial Statue, located at the Harry A. Roberts Plaza on Union Street and Dr. Martin Luther King Drive in Allentown.Wednesday, February 15, 2012 09:58 AM
The maquette, or mini-statue, designed by Ed Dwight, will be available for viewing from February 15 -29. The Trexler Library is open Monday – Thursday 8 a.m. – 1 a.m., Friday 8 a.m. – 10 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. – 7 p.m., and Sunday 11 a.m. – 1 a.m.
Unveiled in January 2011, the Martin Luther and Coretta Scott King Memorial Statue is just one of many public arts projects with which Dwight is involved. He has created over 120 memorials, monuments and public art installations, as well as some 18,000 gallery level sculptures, Including the largest Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, to date, installed in Denver, CO.
“Ed’s life story and accomplishments are inspirational! We are not only lucky to now have the only statue memorial in the world of its kind in Allentown, but to also have had it done by an historical artistic giant like Ed Dwight. More people should know this story,” says Kevin Easterling, Executive Director for the project.
Before becoming an artist, Dwight enjoyed many varied experiences. Over the years, he has been: an Air Force test pilot, America’s first African American astronaut candidate, an IBM computer systems engineer, an aviation consultant, a restauranteur, a real estate developer and a construction entrepreneur. However, for over 30 years, Dwight has focused his direction on fine art sculptures, large-scale memorials and public art projects. Since his art career began in 1978, after attaining his MFA in Sculpture from the University of Denver, Dwight has become one of the most prolific and insightful sculptors in America.
Other major installations underway are: The National Monument to Cotton Picking and Sharecropping, which will include a museum & research center, installed in the historic town of Mound Bayou, MS, on the Mississippi Delta; The John Hope Franklin Memorial in Tulsa, OK, a tribute to the destruction of the black town of Greenwood, OK in the 1921 Tulsa Race Riot, where hundreds of Blacks were killed and the entire town burned to the ground; and a memorial to Rosa Parks for the City of Grand Rapids, MI.
For more info on Ed Dwight, visit his website @ http://www.eddwight.com
