Pegasus Inspires
New campus sculpture captures the imagination.
Many campuses feature a work of public art that embodies institutional values and traditions. UCLA has its Bruin Bear, USC its Tommy Trojan, Columbia its Alma Mater, and Penn State its Nittany Lion. Until recently, however, Thacher did not have one. But now, through the generosity of an anonymous donor and the talents of driftwood sculptor James Doran-Webb, a rearing Pegasus—as if descended directly from the Thacher seal—presides over the Upper Field.
At a recent Assembly, Head of School Michael Mulligan shared some thoughts with students about Thacher’s long connection with Pegasus, which Sherman Day Thacher selected as one of the emblems of his School not simply for the equestrian connection, but because the flying horse is a longstanding symbol of inspiration.
“Pegasus, as you know,” explained Mr. Mulligan, “is that horse from Greek mythology who came to us from Zeus in order to bring thunder and lightening from Olympus to the world. Pegasus is also significant because when he landed on the Muses’ Mount Helicon and struck the ground with his hoof, he released the springs of inspiration—inspiration for poets, creativity, and achievement. This has meaning at Thacher where we hope the School provides inspiration to you and to others.”
“Pegasus also fits in beautifully with our notion of the Horse Program, where you undertake that work in horsemanship and realize that you can actually begin to fly symbolically in terms of how you feel about yourself, your teammates, and all you attempt.”
After these remarks, Mr. Mulligan introduced the sculptor, who, in turn, shared some of his background and the challenges involved in making Pegasus. Originally from England, Doran-Webb got his first taste of artistry by observing the craftsmen in the woodshop of his parents’ antique business.
For the last 30 years, Doran-Webb has lived in the Philippines, where he works with a small team of assistants on the island of Cebu. Over the course of that time he’s collected dead wood to supply his projects. “Last count I had more than 110 tons of wood; about 250,000 pounds of it,” he told students. “It sounds a lot, but when you are looking for that elusive piece to conform to that part of the anatomy of the sculpture you are building, you need a lot of driftwood. You look around for the piece and you find a big slab of driftwood like that, and in the corners of it you’ll find like a knob that will fit maybe the nostril or a part of the ear. So I need a lot of wood.”
For more about James Doran-Webb, view this biographical video.
For more about James Doran-Webb, view this biographical video.
Every big sculpture Doran-Webb makes presents him with a new learning curve. “The biggest challenge with Pegasus,” he said, “was the hind legs—the cannon bones. If you look at a horse from the rear view, that point should be only about two-inches wide, but with the weight of the sculpture and those wings which could be potentially buffeted about in gale force winds, I had to go to a 3-inch diameter of stainless steel, which in turn would have to be clad with a layer of driftwood. Which would give you twice the thickness that you need—a really lumpy looking horse. So, eventually I came to the conclusion that I needed to first go bigger, starting with 3.5 inches before shaving it back in the middle to give an idea of tapering at that point.”
The sculptor went on to share two “secrets” of his work: “The first is the armature, which is the underlying structure or skeleton. I make it as strong as possible. In the case of Pegasus, I’ve used half a ton of stainless steel that rises up from underneath the rock all the way to the tips of the wings and tails and ears—there’s not a piece of wood that doesn’t have stainless steel in it. The second secret is the species of wood. The wood I use is called molave or tugas and this stuff is magic wood. Keep in mind the wood used in Pegasus came from trees that died quite probably before your grandparents were born. And this is what has created the nooks and crannies and deep grooves in the wood—that wonderful tactile patternation. It’s really dense and very oily and it’s the oiliness that repels the moisture. So you can leave a piece of this tugas outside and under two or three weeks of continued rainfall you can scratch it and it’s bone dry under your fingernails. It’s really fantastic wood for the purpose.”
The sculptor went on to share two “secrets” of his work: “The first is the armature, which is the underlying structure or skeleton. I make it as strong as possible. In the case of Pegasus, I’ve used half a ton of stainless steel that rises up from underneath the rock all the way to the tips of the wings and tails and ears—there’s not a piece of wood that doesn’t have stainless steel in it. The second secret is the species of wood. The wood I use is called molave or tugas and this stuff is magic wood. Keep in mind the wood used in Pegasus came from trees that died quite probably before your grandparents were born. And this is what has created the nooks and crannies and deep grooves in the wood—that wonderful tactile patternation. It’s really dense and very oily and it’s the oiliness that repels the moisture. So you can leave a piece of this tugas outside and under two or three weeks of continued rainfall you can scratch it and it’s bone dry under your fingernails. It’s really fantastic wood for the purpose.”
In addition to its obvious fit with Thacher iconography, the sculpture carries a theme of environmental sustainability that feels right for Thacher as we continue to assess and improve the ways we steward our resources. The driftwood used in Pegasus comes from the national tree of the Philippines, which was plentiful 150 years ago but has become scarcer due to overharvesting. To remedy that situation, Doran-Webb has launched a program called 80,000 Trees, which aims to plant that many trees over the next five years and form relationships with local communities to ensure that the trees grow to maturity. Each new project allows him to fund more plantings.
“This is a sign of Thacher coming of age,” concluded Mr. Mulligan in his remarks. “You think of us as 127 years old and we didn’t really have any significant public art on campus.”
And now we do. From its pedestal above Upper Field, our new work of art is firmly anchored in Mr. Thacher’s idea of a classical education, but Pegasus is also attuned to the demands and opportunities of our time, a time in which we are challenged to make creative and sustainable use of the resources available to us—a project that, like the statue itself, both demands and generates inspiration.
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