1990s Original Signed Oil Painting of General Sherman and 'Victory" Statue in Grand Army Plaza by David Beynon Pena, Framed

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David Beynon Pena was amazed by the beauty of this 24-foot-high towering monument to Union Army General William Tecumseh Sherman … Read more David Beynon Pena was amazed by the beauty of this 24-foot-high towering monument to Union Army General William Tecumseh Sherman (1820–1891) by the American sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens. He painted it ala prima on-site near the renowned Plaza Hotel, near where the carriage horses pick up couples for romantic rides through Central Park..
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History of the Statue from CentralParkNYC.org:
"In 1891, friends of William Tecumseh Sherman and members of New York City’s Chamber of Commerce formed a committee to advocate for a public monument and approached the renowned sculptor Saint-Gaudens about creating it. William Tecumseh Sherman was unveiled in Grand Army Plaza in 1903.

The monument depicts Sherman on his horse, Ontario, led by the allegorical figure of Victory. The model for “Victory” was an African-American woman named Hettie Anderson who worked as a model for many of the era's most prominent painters and sculptors. The figure of Victory is depicted holding a palm frond as she leads Sherman to Union victory. Sherman's horse is trampling a Georgia Pine branch, a symbol of the South.

In September 2015, the Central Park Conservancy completed a major restoration of the northern half of Grand Army Plaza, including a conservation and regilding of the Sherman monument. The project involved cleaning the bronze and applying new gold leaf to the surface of the statue. A protective coating of wax — tinted to emphasize the sculptural detail of the monument—was layered on top."

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Artist bio:

David Beynon Pena (b. 1958) was an American painter and native New Yorker who began his career painting portraits after watching Everett Raymond Kinstler demonstrate portrait painting at the National Academy. David went on to paint portraits of many distinguished leaders, including U.S. Senator Howell Heflin, actor Sean Connery, dancer Gregory Hines, and Ruth Reininghaus Smith - the first woman president of the Salmagundi Club. He also painted portraits for the Hollywood films Good Will Hunting and The Preacher's Wife.

Apart from portraits, David was known for his alla prima evocative cityscapes, still lifes and nudes. He also painted landscapes and seascapes in oil and watercolor in Maine at Wooster Cove on North Haven and on Leadbetter Island, where he spent summers with his wife Alison. He typically produced two or three paintings a day, always following the light in the style of John Singer Sargent. His interiors have been compared to those of Fairfield Porter, and only a handful of those paintings remain available to the public.

David painted boldly and quickly, easily capturing the venue, likenesses and mood of his surroundings. Known for being gregarious and asking questions as he worked, he occasionally encouraged a curious child to paint a few blades of grass on his paintings.

David started painting at age 11, receiving his training at the High School of Art and Design, The Pratt Institute, the Art Students League of New York and the National Academy of Design School of Fine Arts, where he eventually became an adjunct faculty member. A brilliant teacher, David was known for his ability to explain complex ideas in accessible ways, for his portrait and landscape demonstrations, and for his participation in multiple juried shows for art associations in the Tri-state area. During his lifetime, he received over 50 national and regional awards, and served as President of the Audubon Artists Incorporated, among many other distinguished art institutions.

David read art books voraciously and was a lifelong, dedicated student of his craft. When he passed away in 2016, David had almost finished an art instruction book, Painting Portraits with a Bold Brush, to be published posthumously. See less