Rudolph Edward Torrini

Rudolph Edward Torrini
Rudolph Edward Torrini
Born	March 31, 1923; Wood Carving, Drawing

Rudolph Edward Torrini (March 31, 1923 – September 5, 2018) was an American artist best known for his

wood carvings and bronze public monuments in the St. Louis area, including "The Immigrants", "The Union Soldier," and "Martin Luther King." A student of Croatian sculptor Ivan Meštrović, his work is also influenced by the works of Auguste Rodin. Torrini trained and taught Bob Cassilly,^[1] founder of the City Museum in St. Louis, and also helped establish the Master of Fine Arts program at Fontbonne College

.

Life and career

Early life

Rudolph Torrini was born in St. Louis the son of Stella DiPalma, a pianist in silent movie houses, and Cherinto Torrini, a plaster mold-maker from

clarinetist on the ship's band of the transport ship U.S.S. West Point

.

Torrini had begun drawing during the war, and afterwards earned a BFA at the St. Louis School of Fine Arts (now Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts) at Washington University in St. Louis, then was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to study for a year at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze in Florence, Italy in 1949. Afterwards, he earned his MFA at the University of Notre Dame, where he studied under Ivan Meštrović. He went on to teach first at Webster College (now Webster University) for 17 years, then chaired the Art Department at Fontbonne College for 35 years.^[2]

St. Louis artists community

Torrini was part of the community of 20th Century St. Louis artists that included

stained glass window

illustrations, and has four children.

Musical career

Rudolph Torrini first worked as a

Dixieland band with five other musicians called Tiger Rag Jazz Forever, which performed in the St. Louis area and recorded 3 LPs, including Tigers on Parade.^[3]

All of their recordings feature clarinet and saxophone solos by Torrini. In addition, he was a lover of classical music, and always listened to it while working on his sculptures in his studio.

Death

Torrini died on September 5, 2018, at the age of 95, following complications from Alzheimer's disease.^[4]

Major works

Rudolph Torrini is best known for his bronze cast public monuments, but he has also made many smaller statues, bas-reliefs, wood carvings, and drawings. A life long Catholic, many of his works have religious themes (for example "John Paul II", "St. Patrick"), while others commemorate groups or individuals, ("Italian Immigrants", "Martin Luther King") or explore the human body ("The Four Seasons and the Clouds").

Public monuments in the St. Louis Area

"The Union Soldier,"
Museum of Westward Expansion inside the Gateway Arch

"The Italian Immigrants," The Hill
"The Soccer Player,"
St. Louis Soccer Park
(7 foot bronze)
"Martin Luther King," Fountain Park, 1978 (11 foot bronze, cast in Italy by Ferdinando Marinelli Artistic Foundry Florence , unveiled by St. Louis Mayor James Conway)^[5]
"St. Louis Police Memorial, Civil Courts Building, 1988. (10 foot bronze, commemorates St. Louis policemen fallen in the line of duty)^[6]
"A Boy and His Dog," Dogtown
"Christopher Harris," Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital, 1997 (5 foot hollow-cast bronze; commemorates 9 years old child slain in the crossfire of a gunfight. Melted hand guns incorporated inside the cast to symbolize the importance of non-violence. Dedicated by St. Louis Mayor Clarence Harmon).^[7]
"Pope John Paul II,"
Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis
(7 foot bronze)
"The Four Seasons and the Clouds," City Museum (Plaster)