Native Americans – Walk Ashland

“We Are Here” Honors Native Americans (Part 3 of 3)

(Part 3 of 3: Wood carving at SOU Hannon Library,
stories from 2012 to 2020)

38 photos!
How the 20′ tall sculpture was moved.
Every carving on sculpture described.
Quotes from Grandma Aggie.
Ashland Public Art Series.

Summary of “We Are Here” – Parts 1 and 2

“We Are Here” is a sculpture that honors the First Nations of the Rogue Valley. In addition to a sculpture, it has been called a wood carving, a Spirit Pole and a Prayer Pole. The bronze replica is located where North Main Street and Lithia Way meet, a very visible location just one block from the Plaza.

This article (Part 3 of 3) is about the original wood carved prayer pole, which was moved from North Main street to Southern Oregon University Hannon Library in December of 2012. This map shows the location of Hannon Library.

"We Are Here" Ashland — Map showing location of “We Are Here” in the Hannon Library of Southern Oregon University. (map from Google)

“I felt very honored to work with Matthew Haines and Russell Beebe, and it was a great honor to be able to do this for our people, for the Old Ones.”
Grandma Aggie

Local attorney and arts patron Matthew Haines funded the wood carving after he felt a calling to have it made. Russell Beebe, of Anishinaabe Native heritage, was the sculptor (wood carver).

Russell Beebe (standing) with Matthew Haines (right) and Grandma Aggie at the “We Are Here” dedication in 2006. (photo from the Russell Beebe collection)

Grandma Aggie performed ceremonies for the tree and then the Prayer Pole, including at the original September 30, 2006 dedication. Within a few years, Beebe and Haines realized that the soft alder wood of the sculpture would deteriorate irreparably if it continued to be exposed to the elements for many years. There was only one way to save “We Are Here” — to move it indoors. But that meant losing this visible, public location for an artwork that honors Native people of the Rogue Valley.

Bronze sculpture artist Jack Langford was hired to make a bronze replica of the wood prayer pole. Because of the size and complexity of “We Are Here,” it took 55 small flexible molds to capture every detail of the wood. Each of the 55 flexible molds was transformed in a multistage process into heat-resistant fused silica molds. These were filled with molten bronze at 2,000 degrees F, after which the 55 bronze pieces had to be fit together seamlessly. The entire process took Langford nearly a year. The bronze replica was installed on North Main Street in May 2013.

“We Are Here” alder carving moved, December 18, 2012

On December 18, 2012, “We Are Here” was moved from North Main Street to the Hannon Library of Southern Oregon University. Ashley Powell, co-chair of the SOU Native American Student Union, smudges before it is lifted from its site on North Main Street. (photo by James Royce Young)

Matthew Haines had asked Grandma Aggie’s permission for a bronze replica of “We Are Here” to replace the wood sculpture outdoors at the “Ashland Gateway” location. She said yes and suggested that the original wood statue be moved to the Hannon Library at Southern Oregon University. The City and University agreed, and the move took place on December 18, 2012.

As a photo description of that snowy morning put it: “A fresh snowfall caused the lifting crane to be one hour late. The schedule, planned to the minute, became completely irrelevant and we were on Indian time the rest of the day. It was a beautiful morning.”

This photo shows “We Are Here” being lifted from its site on North Main Street. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

The crane lowered it onto a huge steel-railed rolling dolly, where it was tightly chained on a flatbed truck for transport to SOU Hannon Library. I spoke with Dan Wahpepah, who coordinated the move. He said that “We Are Here” was strapped in the U-shaped dolly with come-alongs on both sides, so they had flexibility to maneuver the large statue through the library doors and then on to the new base installed in the library. Come-alongs are winches that incorporate ratchets for better control. Once in the library, it was bolted to a hinge on the concrete base and then lifted. Lifting it upright from the dolly took careful planning, clear guidance, chains, strong ropes, three wooden poles and many strong hands.

“We Are Here” being moved into the Hannon Library of Southern Oregon University. This photo shows the invocation before the final lift into position at Hannon Library. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

“We Are Here” being moved into the Hannon Library of Southern Oregon University. This photo shows one of the two pulling teams on the second floor. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

Wahpepah told me the move followed Native American traditions. With an important move, it is traditional to stop four times to honor the four directions. Assisting Wahpepah were community members and students of the SOU Native American Student Union.

A new base for “We Are Here” at library

“We Are Here” in the Hannon Library of Southern Oregon University. This photo shows the 5,000 pound concrete base being moved into position. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

A new base was created for the library location of the “We Are Here” wood prayer pole, beginning with a 5,000 pound foundation of concrete. After “We Are Here” was in place on this concrete, Jesse Biesanz began the process of adding a round dome of mortar and river rocks to complete the prayer pole base. He had a short window of time in January to complete the project, when students were on break.

“We Are Here” in the Hannon Library of Southern Oregon University. This detail shows Jesse Biesanz creating the base mound of river rocks. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

He experimented with different colored mortar mixes to find a warm color that would complement the color of the wood. At the bottom, he began with rectangular stone. Then he inserted river rocks of various colors and sizes. Finally, he embedded four animals carved in sandstone at the four cardinal directions of the base.

A creation story on the base

The carvings on the base depict four animals from the Anishinaabe creation story. Russell Beebe, who carved the wood prayer pole, also carved the four animals in sandstone. Beebe is of Anishinaabe tribal heritage. You can read his description of the creation story on the wall of the library near “We Are Here.”

“We Are Here” in the Hannon Library of Southern Oregon University. This detail shows Russell Beebe carving the HellDiver from the Anishinaabe creation story. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

Carved wood benches for “We Are Here” at library

Russell Beebe with tree trunk section that will be used to carve one of the benches for SOU Hannon Library. (photo from Russell Beebe collection)

Beebe carved the three beautiful benches by the statue in Hannon Library from the trunk of one large pine tree. One is Bear, one is Cougar (or Mountain Lion) and one is Salmon.

Cougar bench — Russell Beebe carving the cougar bench for SOU Hannon Library. (photo from Russell Beebe collection)

Grandma Aggie wrote in her book: “Russell carved eight-foot benches for people to go and meditate or to have any type of classes there; they would have room. … So he has carved these big eight-foot benches around the spirit pole, and I thought that way people could come and pray, or you could have some sort of a program here about the tree where people could come and sit quietly or whatever.”

Symbolism in “We Are Here”

Here is a brief introduction to the animals and people carved in the “We Are Here” statue. For thousands of years, Southern Oregon tribes lived a sustainable lifestyle in balance with the land, animals and plants of the region. Because it was a hunter-gatherer lifestyle, the local population remained small and spread out. Each tribal group had slightly different beliefs and ceremonies. However, all felt a kinship with the animals and plants they depended on for their survival. Russell Beebe brought that sense of kinship into his carving of “We Are Here.”

Grandma Aggie expressed the concept of kinship in her book. She wrote, “The First Nations include not only the Takelma, Shasta, Tututni and other tribes, but also the Salmon Nation, the Bear Nation, the Tree Nations, and all the species of life in this region.” She had a true “big picture” perspective embracing all of life.

Ashland’s North Mountain Park online pamphlet about local Native American history gives an insight into the importance of animals in their daily life. “Animal parts, including hides, fur, claws, hooves, teeth, bones and antlers were critical in the manufacture of needles, awls, wedges, fishhooks, digging stick handles, scrapers, bow strings, arrows quivers and ceremonial decorations, among other items.” This list doesn’t even mention that animals provided food, clothing and shelter for the people.

Here is a brief description and photo of each human and animal carved on the prayer pole.

Beebe told me that he only had room to represent two of the local tribes, and he chose the Takelma and the Shasta. The Takelma woman and Shasta man each have a child, who represent the future.

Takelma Woman and child

Grandma Aggie in front of “We Are Here” on dedication day, September 30, 2006. The Takelma woman on “We Are Here” is modeled on Aggie when she was in her 30s. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

Russell Beebe used Grandma Aggie as a model for the Takelma woman. He carved her as she looked in her 30s, wearing her regalia clothing. Beebe told me with a laugh, “I got the blessing from her daughter Nadine. She came out one day and looked at my depiction of the 30-year-old [Aggie]. She said, ‘That’s mom.’ So I got it right.”

The Takelma people lived primarily along the Rogue River and to the south as far as what is now the Ashland area. They were a small tribe in the 1850s when settlers arrived in the Rogue Valley. However, they and other ancestral tribes had lived in the area for at least 10,000 years before they were forcibly removed in 1856 to the Siletz Reservation in northwest Oregon.

Grandma Aggie and many other Native Americans have moved back to Southern Oregon. This sweet photo taken at the original dedication of “We Are Here” in 2006 shows four generations of Grandma Aggie’s family.

Four generations! From left, Chantele Liratos, Aggie’s great-granddaughter; Grandma Aggie; Nadine Martin, Aggie’s daughter; Tanya Narvrez, Aggie’s granddaughter; bottom right is Felicia Florindo, friend of the family. Taken September 30, 2006. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

Shasta Man and child

The Shasta people lived primarily in Northern California, though in their northern territory they shared the Bear Creek drainage (now the Ashland/Medford area) with Takelma bands. American settlers James Cardwell and Thomas Smith visited the Ashland area in the winter of 1851-1852. They described a Shasta winter village of perhaps 100 people along Ashland Creek, near the current location of Ashland Plaza.

With spring and summer warm weather, both Shasta and Takelma would spread out in smaller bands at higher elevations to hunt meat and gather wild foods. The two tribes fought at times, but also intermarried, traded and shared hunting grounds.

Canada Goose

Canada geese are easy to see – and hear – in the Rogue Valley at certain times of the year. Geese and ducks were among the animal foods hunted and eaten by Rogue Valley Native Americans.

Stag (Deer)

Deer provided food, clothing and tools. Shirts, hats, buckskin trousers, skirts and moccasins were all made from deer or elk.

According to Karen Rose in her 2002 essay, “The Takelma would light fires in the shape of a horseshoe to drive deer toward the bottom of the semi-circle where the women stood rattling deer bones and the men waited to shoot them. They also would use this method to drive the deer into elaborately constructed brush fences where they could be taken in snares. The Takelma also regularly burned their hunting area to produce better grass with which to attract wild game and maintain their habitat by reducing the underbrush.”

Edward Sapir gave another version of the Takelma deer hunt, writing that deer were often hunted by groups of men with the help of dogs. They would be driven towards a fenced area with traps to entangle the deer’s legs, so they could be killed. For long-term food storage, “hard dough-like cakes of the [deer] fat were put away for use in the winter.”

Bird in Grandma Aggie’s hand

The bird in Grandma Aggie’s hand represents her connection with nature and the web of life.

Eagle

In her book, Grandma Aggie described the eagle. “Same way with the eagle. It’s a messenger. Long before Congress made it the national bird for us, our Native people throughout the land had already had the eagle that way because he could fly the highest and see the farthest and carry our messages to the Beloved. It was already one of our totems.”

“You know it’s unusual, but you know that the Creator let me know that we’re in the right place, doing the right thing. Like when they dedicated this mountain up here after me. Five eagles up there. Bless you, Grandfather. Whoa! That’s great.” Read more about the mountain dedication below in the section about Dragonfly.

Russell Beebe was given the honor of placing an Eagle feather high on “We Are Here” at the 2006 dedication. If you go see “We Are Here” in the SOU library, you will see an Eagle feather hanging from the Shasta man’s headband and several Red-Tailed Hawk feathers hanging from Grandma Aggie’s hand.

Dragonfly

“Every place I have been around the world – I have traveled a lot – the dragonflies always come. I always say it is the Creator’s messengers.”
Grandma Aggie

Sculptor Russell Beebe told me why there is a dragonfly on the prayer pole. “The dragonfly was put there just for Aggie, because the dragonfly is one of her spirit animals.” Grandma Aggie wrote in her book that “dragonflies have been a phenomenal thing in my life.” “Like when they named the mountain over here at Ashland Taowhywee Peak, there was dragonflies all over my head, and five eagles. Every place I have been around the world – I have traveled a lot – the dragonflies always come. I always say it is the Creator’s messengers.”

Taowhywee Point, elevation 3,707 feet, is located four miles to the northeast of Ashland. The peak was formally named for Pilgrim’s great-grandmother. In her book, Grandma Aggie explains who she was. “As I said, my Native name, Taowhywee, was given to me a long time ago through my great-grandmother Margaret, whose name was Morning Star. She was a great shaman of the Takelma people here in Southern Oregon.”

Salmon

“In 2007, the [salmon] ceremony was moved to the place where it was held for thousands of years: the Tilomikh (Powerhouse Falls), on the Rogue River near Gold Hill, Oregon.”
National Park Service website

The most important animal foods for Rogue Valley Native Americans were river fish such as salmon and trout. They were caught using nets, fishing lines made of plant fiber or long spears. Traditionally, ceremonies were conducted each year at the beginning of the salmon hunt.

We turn to Grandma Aggie once again. She was the driving force behind restoration of an ancient salmon ceremony. The National Park Service (NPS) website says in an article about the Takelma tribe: “In the 1970’s, the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians began to reorganize. The confederation arose out of the tribes that had been relocated to the Siletz reservation as one, larger, intertribal group. Their first elected chief was George Harney, a full-blooded Takelma. George Harney’s granddaughter, Agnes Baker-Pilgrim, continues to educate others about her heritage.”

“In 1994, for the first time in over 140 years, an ancient ceremony took place to welcome and give thanks for the returning salmon, on the Kanaka Flats of the Applegate River. People of all heritages were welcomed at the annual Salmon Gathering on the Applegate River until 2006. In 2007, the ceremony was moved to the place where it was held for thousands of years: the Tilomikh (Powerhouse Falls), on the Rogue River near Gold Hill, Oregon. Since then, the ceremony has taken place annually in its traditional location, demonstrating that the Takelma culture is alive and will continue into the future.”

Bear

Bear provided food and clothing. Men’s fur hats were made of bear or deer heads, with the ears reportedly left on for decoration. Fur was used for clothing and wintertime blankets.

The bear is also a totem animal. Aggie again: “Like when I am really tired and how that bear medicine comes through. I think, god, I just can’t stay up another minute, but I do. So I attribute it to – it comes from the bear power.”

Coyote

The native-languages.org website describes Coyote as “the trickster figure of the Takelma tribe. As in other Northwestern mythology, Takelma coyote stories range from light-hearted tales of mischief and buffoonery to more serious legends about the nature of the world.”

Beaver

“Beaver are nature’s ecosystem engineers….”
Aaron Hall

Beavers were once abundant in Oregon. Due to demand for beaver pelts in Europe and the Eastern United States, they were nearly trapped to extinction in the 1800s. They have now become reestablished along streams throughout the state.

Beavers are such an important part of a healthy stream ecosystem that Native Americans would have held them in high regard. According to aquatic biologist Aaron Hall, “Beaver are nature’s ecosystem engineers, felling trees and building dams, and changing waterways for their own benefit. But they also benefit other species in the process, including humans as well as many species that are now in jeopardy at least in part due to the historic loss of beavers. Their dams help to control the quantity and quality of water downstream, which both humans and animals use. Their ponds and flooded areas create habitat for many plants and animals, such as fish, birds, insects, and amphibians. In fact, some species only live near beaver ponds.”

Snake

When Beebe removed the bark, he was amazed to see a small companion alder tree winding its way up the old alder, almost like a vine. The snake was carved from this vine-like companion alder.

Dennis Gray wrote: “A number of animals were specifically not eaten by the Upland Takelma, such as porcupines, weasels, civet cats (either a spotted skunk or “ring-tailed” cat), screech owls, coyotes, wolves, eagles, snakes, and frogs. It was also stated that certain people would not eat bear meat (Drucker 1940:294). Most of the above mentioned animals, which were not eaten, were associated with supernatural spirits.” According to some sources, the rattlesnake was considered a guardian spirit, but possibly one that inclined people toward evil.

Cougar or Mountain lion

Like the beaver, mountain lions are an important part of the natural ecosystem. They were essential to keep the population of smaller animals in balance.

According to anthropological reports, they were also a minor part of the Shasta tribe diet. I imagine that most other animals were much easier to hunt and kill!

Raven spirit figure

Raven stories are found in many tribes of the Pacific Northwest, primarily along the coast. In many of the stories, Raven is involved in creation or in bringing light to the people.

"We Are Here" - Russell Beebe signature — Russell Beebe’s signature on “We Are Here” wood carving prayer pole. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

Closing words

I will let Grandma Aggie have the closing words, from her book Grandma Says: Wake Up World!. She wrote: “I felt very honored to work with Matthew Haines and Russell Beebe, and it was a great honor to be able to do this for our people, for the Old Ones. That’s why I wanted it – for them to be recognized in my background. It was a good feeling. The artist’s name and my name are there to this day. So there it stands, the carving in bronze. I feel very honored that, when I go to the Star Nation, that there will be that spirit pole because, as I say, Ashland is a threshold and there is nothing Native out there. Now we have the bronze that will show there were residents of First Nation people there. I feel very good to have it standing there.”

Grandma Aggie has now gone to the Star Nation. She will be missed. She will also be remembered whenever someone views the bronze “We Are Here” on North Main Street or the original alder wood “We Are Here” in the SOU library.

Heartfelt thanks

My heartfelt thanks go out to:

Grandma Aggie (Agnes Baker Pilgrim): Inspiration for “We Are Here.” (1924 – 2019)

Grandma Aggie (Agnes Baker Pilgrim), In Memoriam — In Memoriam sign for Grandma Aggie *at the Hannon Library of Southern Oregon University*. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

Russell Beebe: Wood carver of the original alder tree “We Are Here” prayer pole.
Jack Langford: Artist of the “We Are Here” bronze replica.
Lloyd Matthew Haines: He felt the calling for “We Are Here” to be created, then funded both the original wood carving and the bronze replica.
The First Nations Old Ones who lived in this area for thousands of years.
Everyone who helped make “We Are Here” possible in both of its forms.
Those who generously talked with me, shared their photos with me, or reviewed the article for me. They are listed in “References” below.

Part 1 of this series of articles about “We Are Here” described the creation of the original wood carving prayer pole, and its dedication on September 30, 2006.

LINK TO PART 1 ABOUT “WE ARE HERE”

Part 2 of this series of articles about “We Are Here” described the bronze replica that was crafted and now stands on North Main Street.

LINK TO PART 2 ABOUT “WE ARE HERE”

References for Parts 1, 2 and 3:

Aldous, Vickie. “Downtown sculpture to be cast in bronze,” Ashland Tidings, April 18, 2012. (accessed May 21, 2020)

Aldous, Vickie. “Native people sculpture will move to SOU,” Ashland Tidings, November 3, 2012. (accessed May 21, 2020)

Anon. “Native Americans of the Rogue Valley,” North Mountain Park Nature Center, Ashland Parks and Recreation Department, Version 4: May 2010.
http://www.ashland.or.us/Files/Native%20American%20Background%20Booklet.pdf

Anon. “We Are Here,” Book Marks, Hannon Library Newsletter, Volume 24, No. 1, Fall 2013.

Anon. “Takelma Tribe,” NPS.gov.(accessed January 10, 2021) https://www.nps.gov/orca/learn/historyculture/takelma-tribe.htm

Anon. “Takelma Legends,” native-languages.org website. (accessed January 17, 2021)
http://www.native-languages.org/takelma-legends.htm

Ayers, Jane. “‘Grandma Aggie’ leaves a lasting impact,” Ashland Tidings, December 3, 2019. (accessed May 21, 2020)

Beebe, Russell. Interview and personal communication, June 2, 2020 and other dates. Thank you, Russell, for sharing your photos with me.

Beebe, Russell. Website. (accessed May 14, 2020)
http://www.russellbeebe.com/index.html#

Bernhagen, Jaimie. “‘We Are Here’ Event with Oregon Shakespeare Festival,” Red Earth Descendants website, October 14, 2012. (accessed May 21, 2020)

Biesanz, Jesse. Interview and personal communication, August 2020.

Cardwell, James, “Southern Oregon Pioneers,” Oregon Sentinel, Jacksonville, July 8, 1882, page 3, from http://truwe.sohs.org/files/cardwell.html

Darling, John. “‘Grandma Aggie’ dies at 95,” Ashland Tidings, November 27, 2019. (accessed May 21, 2020)

Doty, Thomas. Website. (accessed May 14, 2020)
https://www.dotycoyote.com/culture/sculpture_installation_1.html

Gray, Dennis J. “The Takelma and Their Athapascan Neighbors,” University of Oregon Anthropological Papers, No. 37, 1987.

Haines, Lloyd Matthew. Interview and personal communication, May 13, 2020 and other dates.

Hall, Aaron. “Exploring with Beavers, Nature’s Ecosystem Engineers,” Defenders of Wildlife website, September 28, 2016.
https://defenders.org/blog/2016/09/exploring-beavers-natures-ecosystem-engineers

Kuiryamf. “‘We Are Here’ statue relocated to Hannon Library,” The Siskiyou, January 15, 2013. (accessed May 14, 2020)
https://siskiyou.sou.edu/2013/01/15/we-are-here-statue-relocated-to-hannon-library/

Langford, Jack. Interview and personal communication, May 20, 2020 and other dates. Thank you, Jack, for allowing my wife and me to be present at a bronze casting.

Martin, Nadine. Many thanks for reviewing the articles.

Norman, Julie. Interview and personal communication, August 2020 and other dates. Thank you, Julie, for sharing your photos and videos with me.

Paris-Stamm, Glen. 31-minute Video. “Artist on Your Doorstep presents: Jack Langford, Sculptor, ‘We Are Here'(prayer pole now in bronze),” City of Ashland website. (accessed January 18, 2021)
http://www.ashland.or.us/Page.asp?NavID=18059
Also available directly on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eD73OiZBf6Q

Pilgrim, Agnes Baker (Taowhywee). Grandma Says: Wake Up World, Blackstone Publishing, 2015.

Pilgrim, Agnes Baker. Website. (accessed May 14, 2020)
http://www.agnesbakerpilgrim.org/Page.asp?PID=108

Rose, Karen. May 25, 2002. “Takelma Indians: An Essay on Native Americans in the Rogue River Area,” Hugo Neighborhood Association & Historical Society, Hugo, OR. For the entire essay, go to http://www.hugoneighborhood.org/takelma.htm

Sapir, Edward. “Notes on the Takelma Indians of Southwestern Oregon,” American Anthropologist, Vol. 9, No. 2, April-June, 1907.

Valencia, Mandy. “We Are Here,” Ashland Daily Tidings, December 21, 2012.
https://ashlandtidings.com/archive/-we-are-here–04-27-2018

Valencia, Mandy. 5-minute Video. “We Are Here Dedication Ceremony,” Ashland Tidings website, May 24, 2013. (accessed January 18, 2021)
https://kzclip.com/video/9d5d_FoTkq4/we-are-here-dedication-ceremony.html

Valencia, Mandy. 4-minute Video. Russell Beebe carving eyes in the bronze We Are Here statue, Ashland Tidings website, April 2, 2013. (accessed January 18, 2021)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TqrdKFuu-E

Valencia, Mandy. 3-minute Video. Color heating of the We Are Here bronze statue (Jack Langford and Russell Beebe), Ashland Tidings website, April 15, 2013. (accessed January 18, 2021)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fB4eP7F88M8

Wahpepah, Dan. Interview, August 10, 2020.

Young, James Royce. James took many of the photos from the creation of “We Are Here” in both wood and bronze, as well as photos of the 2006 dedication and the 2012 move to SOU Hannon Library. I thank James for sharing so many of his photos with me.

“We Are Here” Honors Native Americans (Bronze Replica, Part 2 of 3)

(Part 2 of 3: Bronze replica on North Main Street,
stories from 2011 to 2020)

Honoring Rogue Valley Native Americans.
Making of the bronze replica.
34 photos.
Artist: Jack Langford.
Ashland Public Art Series.

“The ‘We Are Here’ sculpture has had a healing effect on the valley.”
Russell Beebe

Summary of “We Are Here” – Part 1

"We Are Here" location map — The red arrow points to the location of “We Are Here” (#1) on North Main Street near where Lithia Way joins it. Other numbers on the map indicate additional additional public artworks. (map from Ashland Public Arts Commission page at City of Ashland website)

Local attorney and arts patron Matthew Haines felt called to have the wood carving made from an alder tree that was cut down. He hired Russell Beebe, of Anishinaabe Native heritage, to be the sculptor (wood carver). The late Takelma elder Grandma Aggie (Agnes Baker Pilgrim) was the model for Takelma woman on “We Are Here,” shown in the photo below.

From wood to bronze, the story continues…

After discussing alternatives, Haines and Beebe decided that a bronze casting of the sculpture would be ideal. However, they faced two daunting challenges: first, find the money for a bronze of this size, and second, find someone local with the skill to cast a bronze from this huge, complicated wood carving. As often happens in happy-ending stories, everything clicked into place. Here is the story as I heard it.

Haines, Pilgrim and Beebe, October 29, 2004 — Lloyd Matthew Haines, Agnes Baker Pilgrim and Russell Beebe, October 29, 2004 (photo by James Royce Young)

This was not a simple bronze casting. The statue was not only 19’ to 20’ tall, it was also complex. The carved branches of the tree and the details of the carving called for years of experience with bronze work. It also meant a very large budget.

As Haines was mulling these problems, a buyer unexpectedly appeared for one of Haines’ buildings that was not even for sale! The purchase took place and he had some extra money.

Jack Langford

Jack Langford, a local bronze artist, has been a professional sculptor since 1980. He has operated bronze foundries in Israel, Maine and now in Southern Oregon.

At the same time Haines was trying to determine who would have the skill locally to cast a bronze of this size, Langford was hit with a one-two punch that rocked him. He had just completed the complex and expensive process of moving his entire sculpture studio from Talent to Ashland. After only one week in the new studio, the building owner told him to leave, and to clear out within a week! He came out of the meeting with the building owner reeling both mentally and emotionally. His friend Jesse Biesanz, a stone worker, happened to be there visiting. Jesse heard his plight and said, “I have an idea.” The next day, Biesanz brought Haines to meet with Langford.

Langford’s extensive experience working with bronze met Haines’ need. Haines offered Langford the “We Are Here” commission. Soon after, Langford found space at Jackson Wellsprings where he could work on it. The bronze casting project was underway.

Bronze casting of “We Are Here”

Jack Langford worked on the bronze casting of “We Are Here” for almost a year. With his son as assistant, he began in June 2012 by erecting a scaffold around the wood statue and making a mold of it. Writing “making a mold” oversimplifies the complex process. With a statue this large, they could only create molds a small section at a time. “We Are Here” required 55 molds all together to create the bronze replica!

Starting at the bottom, they made each mold by painting a flexible polyurethane material over the wood of a small area.

This material captured every detail of the wood carving – cracks, knots and all – without harming it. They then applied a rigid epoxy-like material over the flexible layer.

This photo shows flexible polyurethane molds in Jack Langford’s studio. Note: These molds are for a different sculpture, not “We Are Here,” but the process is the same. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

After the two layers were removed together, each flexible mold was transformed through many steps into a rigid mold made of fused silica powder. Fused silica molds could withstand the heat of liquid bronze. Each individual bronze casting is a complex, multi-stage, labor-intensive process. It is an art and a science, and both have to be balanced every step of the way.

Finally, Langford would have to reassemble the 55 small bronze castings back into one sculpture. We will get to that in a moment.

The rigid ceramic molds are made, through a multi-step process, in this room of Jack Langford’s studio. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

2,000-degree melted bronze was poured – very carefully, wearing padding and face protection – into each of the 55 silica molds!

Brief video of liquid bronze being poured into ceramic molds. Note: These molds are for a different sculpture, not “We Are Here,” but the process is the same. (video by Peter Finkle, 2020)

Hammering freed each bronze casting from its silica mold. I winced when the hammering began. Jack assured me, with a laugh, that he was not damaging the sculpture.

The photo below shows what the bronze looked like just out of the mold, with lots of silica sand still stuck to it. Precision sandblasting removed every bit of the silica.

Finally, the molds were combined back into one piece. It took a surprising amount of pounding, clamping, tacking, welding, torching, grinding and polishing to get the bronze “We Are Here” that we see at North Main Street and Lithia Way today.

Here is a peek at the welding.

“We Are Here,” Jack Langford welding the bronze – welder off. (still photo from Glen Paris-Stamm video)

Here is torching of the sculpture. Langford used a patina torch to apply a concentrated flame to the entire surface of the bronze replica. Then, while the bronze metal was still hot, he and Beebe ground the entire surface with small wire brushes to smooth out rough spots. The patina torch and wire brush sanding were both done twice.

The final step was polishing the entire surface of “We Are Here” with carnauba wax, followed by buffing with a soft cloth. This was also done twice.

Two changes from the wood sculpture to the bronze replica

Before Langford began his work, he and carver Russell Beebe met at the wood statue. Langford explained that in the transition from wood to bronze, he could make adjustments to the statue if Beebe wanted any. Beebe considered this and requested two changes.

The first change was thinner wings for the Canada goose at the top of the statue. As he was carving the tree, Beebe kept the wings thicker than he would have liked in order to be sure the wood didn’t crack or break. For the bronze replica, Langford made molds for only the outer side of the wings. Then Beebe came to Langford’s studio and sculpted thinner, more detailed wings in clay for the bronze casting.

These two photos show the comparison. Wings on the bronze “We Are Here” are much thinner, with beautiful detail that is missing from the original wood statue. We as viewers benefit from the close cooperation between the wood carver artist and the bronze worker artist.

Second was another detail I had never noticed. Because of the shape of the tree in the original carving, Beebe had to carve the stag (deer) antler connecting with the Canada goose, as if it were goring the goose. When the bronze casting was created, Beebe and Langford made a slight adjustment in this area so the stag antler is free standing and no longer appears to be goring the goose.

You can compare the two for yourself by viewing the original wood “We Are Here” prayer pole at Southern Oregon University Hannon Library and the bronze replica on North Main Street one block from the Ashland Plaza. Currently (April 2021), the SOU library is closed to non-students. However, “We Are Here” is placed near a large window. You can’t walk all around it and see it up close, but you can see it through the window.

A memorable day

One of Langford’s most memorable days creating the bronze was October 29, 2012. On that day, Oregon Shakespeare Festival hosted an evening event featuring Grandma Aggie, Russell Beebe, Dan Wahpepah, Brent Florendo and others. Grandma Aggie gave a talk about the Oregon Trail of Tears in 1856.

After dark, Langford poured bronze into a mold, as Grandma Aggie and 80 other people looked on. This was his final bronze casting for “We Are Here.” Fittingly, this casting was of Grandma Aggie’s face near the top of the sculpture.

This photo shows Grandma Aggie and her daughter Nadine Martin looking on as Russell Beebe uses a hammer to remove the ceramic mold from the bronze casting of Grandma Aggie’s face. As mentioned above, this was the final bronze casting for the bronze replica of “We Are Here.” (photo by James Royce Young)

The bronze replica base

Jesse Biesanz made the base for the bronze replica, and also used his boom truck to lift the bronze sculpture into place on the base. This base has a theme of river rocks, as does Biesanz’s base for “We Are Here” in the SOU library.

“This is about healing.”
Grandma Aggie

Installation and Dedication, May 2013

"We Are Here" bronze replica dedication — At the dedication for “We Are Here” bronze replica in May 2013. From left, Jack Langford, Dan Wahpepah, Matthew Haines, Grandma Aggie. (still photo from Mandy Valencia video, May 24, 2013)

The bronze replica of “We Are Here” was installed and dedicated in May of 2013. Continuing the theme of ceremony associated with “We Are Here,” there was a small blessing ceremony with Grandma Aggie, her daughter Nadine Martin, Matthew Haines and Jack Langford when the sturdy steel band to anchor the sculpture was bolted into place. More ceremony, with offerings and songs, took place at the bronze replica dedication.

James Royce Young took this wonderful photo of wood carver Russell Beebe shaking hands with bronze artist Jack Langford at the dedication of the “We Are Here” bronze replica. Russell Beebe carved the original wood “We Are Here” from the alder tree. It is now at SOU Hannon Library. Jack Langford made the bronze replica from the wood original. (photo by James Royce Young)

Langford did not work closely with Grandma Aggie on the bronze replica, as he did with sculptor Beebe. However, Langford told me he was deeply moved by Grandma Aggie’s words to him the day his bronze replica of “We Are Here” was installed. She told him that she felt the presence of Spirit just as strongly in the new bronze replica as she did in the original alder tree prayer pole.

When the bronze replica was installed at the site, Grandma Aggie said, “What a gift Jack has. I want to praise and thank him too. My name is Taowhywee, my Native name. My English name is Agnes Baker Pilgrim, and I’m the oldest living descendant of the Takelma Indians that once lived in this valley for 22,000 years that we know of. I’m very proud to stand here today and honor this statue that they’ve done, that the bronze man Jack has done. What a beautiful spiritual thing it is to my heart. It will touch the lives of people that come by. Now this will be here into perpetuity. It is a great honor to the ancient people of this land that lived here for over 22,000 years.”

Detail photos of bronze replica

See some details of the bronze replica below. When I view it up close, I am amazed by how many details of the wood carving – including cracks and knots in the wood – are captured by the bronze replica.

Part 1 of this series of articles about “We Are Here” described the creation of the original wood carving prayer pole, and its dedication on September 30, 2006. Click on the image below to read Part 1.

“We Are Here” Honors Native Americans (Part 1 of 3)

Here is a link to Part 3 of this series of articles about “We Are Here.” It describes the challenge of moving the original wood carving from North Main Street to Southern Oregon University Hannon Library. Here is a preview photo.

PREVIEW photo: “We Are Here” in the process of being moved to SOU Hannon Library, December 18, 2012. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

References for Parts 1, 2 and 3:

Aldous, Vickie. “Downtown sculpture to be cast in bronze,” Ashland Tidings, April 18, 2012. (accessed 5/21/2020)

Aldous, Vickie. “Native people sculpture will move to SOU,” Ashland Tidings, November 3, 2012. (accessed 5/21/2020)

Anon. “We Are Here,” Book Marks, Hannon Library Newsletter, Volume 24, No. 1, Fall 2013.

Anon. “Takelma Tribe,” NPS.gov. (accessed 1/10/2021) https://www.nps.gov/orca/learn/historyculture/takelma-tribe.htm

Anon. “Takelma Legends,” native-languages.org website. (accessed January 17, 2021)
http://www.native-languages.org/takelma-legends.htm

Ayers, Jane. “’Grandma Aggie’ leaves a lasting impact,” Ashland Tidings, December 3, 2019. (accessed May 21, 2020)

Beebe, Russell. Interview and personal communication, June 2, 2020 and other dates. Thank you, Russell, for sharing your photos with me.

Beebe, Russell. Website, accessed May 14, 2020.
http://www.russellbeebe.com/index.html#

Bernhagen, Jaimie. “’We Are Here’ Event with Oregon Shakespeare Festival,” Red Earth Descendants website, October 14, 2012. (accessed May 21, 2020)

Biesanz, Jesse. Interview and personal communication, August 2020.

Cardwell, James, “Southern Oregon Pioneers,” Oregon Sentinel, Jacksonville, July 8, 1882, page 3, from http://truwe.sohs.org/files/cardwell.html

Darling, John. “’Grandma Aggie’ dies at 95,” Ashland Tidings, November 27, 2019. (accessed May 21, 2020)

Doty, Thomas. Website, accessed May 14, 2020.
https://www.dotycoyote.com/culture/sculpture_installation_1.html

Gray, Dennis J. “The Takelma and Their Athapascan Neighbors,” University of Oregon Anthropological Papers, No. 37, 1987.

Haines, Lloyd Matthew. Interview and personal communication, May 13, 2020 and other dates.

Kuiryamf. “’We Are Here’ statue relocated to Hannon Library,” The Siskiyou, January 15, 2013. (accessed May 14, 2020)
https://siskiyou.sou.edu/2013/01/15/we-are-here-statue-relocated-to-hannon-library/

Langford, Jack. Interview and personal communication, May 20, 2020 and other dates.

Martin, Nadine. Many thanks for reviewing the article.

Norman, Julie. Video of the dedication day and dedication ceremony.

Norman, Julie. Interview and personal communication, August 2020 and other dates.

Paris-Stamm, Glen. 31-minute Video. “Artist on Your Doorstep presents: Jack Langford, Sculptor, ‘We Are Here'(prayer pole now in bronze),” City of Ashland website (accessed January 18, 2021)
http://www.ashland.or.us/Page.asp?NavID=18059

Also available directly on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eD73OiZBf6Q

Pilgrim, Agnes Baker (Taowhywee). Grandma Says: Wake Up World, Blackstone Publishing, 2015.

Pilgrim, Agnes Baker. Website, accessed May 14, 2020.
http://www.agnesbakerpilgrim.org/Page.asp?PID=108

Rose, Karen. May 25, 2002. “Takelma Indians: An Essay on Native Americans in the Rogue River Area,” Hugo Neighborhood Association & Historical Society, Hugo, OR. For the entire article go to http://www.hugoneighborhood.org/takelma.htm

Sapir, Edward. “Notes on the Takelma Indians of Southwestern Oregon,” American Anthropologist, Vol. 9, No. 2, April-June, 1907.

Valencia, Mandy. “We Are Here,” Ashland Daily Tidings, December 21, 2012.

https://ashlandtidings.com/archive/-we-are-here–04-27-2018

Wahpepah, Dan. Interview, August 10, 2020.

“We Are Here” Honors Native Americans (Part 1 of 3)

(Part 1 of 3: Original wood carving on North Main Street,
stories from 2004 to 2012)

Honoring Rogue Valley Native Americans.
Creation of the original wood carving.
Introducing Grandma Aggie.
The 1856 Oregon Trail of Tears
Sculptor: Russell Beebe.
Ashland Public Art Series.

Setting the scene

Grandma Aggie speaks to the Gateway Alder, October 29, 2004. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

“On October 29, 2004 Agnes Baker Pilgrim met with a small gathering of people at the base of the Gateway Alder [tree]. There she led us in a ceremony that was the beginning of a path. Grandma Agnes began the ceremony by offering tobacco and lighting fires, one fire for each of the Four Directions, in tins around the Gateway Alder. She then asked for blessing and guidance from the Sprits of the Four Directions as she communed with the tree. Here she is seen speaking directly to the Gateway Alder.”
James Royce Young

What is “We Are Here?”

On his website, Russell Beebe wrote: “From the Blessing of Ashland’s Gateway Alder Tree has emerged a 20 foot monument to the First Nations of Southwest Oregon. The tribes honored in this work are the Shasta (male figure) & Takelma (represented by the inspired likeness of Agnes Baker Pilgrim) Nations. The sculpture is titled ‘We are Here.’ Designer and Sculptor is Russell Beebe – of Anishinaabe Native heritage. Special thanks to Lloyd Matthew Haines.”

“We Are Here” is a sculpture that honors the First Nations of the Rogue Valley, and is part of the City of Ashland public art collection. In addition to a sculpture or statue, it has been called a wood carving, a Spirit Pole and a Prayer Pole.

When American settlers arrived in the early 1850s, they found the Shasta, Takelma and other tribes living in the Ashland area and throughout Southern Oregon. When Hargadine and Helman made the first donation land claims in January 1852 in what is now Ashland, there was a Shasta winter village called K’wakhakha at the site of the Ashland Plaza.

The late Grandma Aggie said that her people, the Takelma, had performed a sacred Salmon ceremony on the Rogue River for 22,000 years. “We Are Here” remembers the Native Americans who lived on this land before the settlers came and “claimed” it.

Between 1852 and 1856, there were four years of conflicts and broken promises as local Native Americans tried to defend their ancestral land. Suffering from diseases and hunger, as well as deaths from the fighting, the remaining Shasta and Takelma were forcibly marched in 1856 to the Siletz Indian Reservation, 150 miles north along the Oregon coast. Through the years, Native Americans have moved back to Southern Oregon, some like the Shasta and Takelma because it is their ancestral homeland.

Where is “We Are Here?”

We Are Here is located where North Main Street and Lithia Way meet. It is a very visible location at the west gateway to downtown Ashland, one short block from the Plaza.

The first challenge

Lloyd Matthew Haines owned the sort-of-triangular lot where North Main Street and Lithia Way come together, which you can see on the map above. He wanted to build there, but it was challenging. Two groups of people opposed his plan. One loosely organized group opposed just about any downtown development, and they were very vocal. The second group objected to cutting down the large 53-year-old alder tree on the property.

Alder tree cut for "We Are Here" — The Gateway Alder tree before being cut down, October 29, 2004. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

Haines instructed his architects to try to design the building around the tree, thus saving it. The architects concluded that the lot was too small for that to work. They said the tree had to go.

An inner calling

Haines felt an inner calling that the tree should be made into “a piece of art that represented the Native American people and their presence in the valley.” As he put it, he knew “that’s what I needed to do.” He contacted wood carver Russell Beebe, of Anishinaabe Native heritage, and Takelma elder Grandma Aggie (Agnes Baker Pilgrim) to ask for their help.

How Matthew Haines first met Russell Beebe and Grandma Aggie

Haines knew the two of them from a tree carving project at his house a few years before. An oak tree had died from old age. Rather than cut it up for firewood, Haines thought of honoring the tree and the land by carving something from it. He contacted the Siskiyou Woodcraft Guild to see if someone would be interested in the project. Russell Beebe responded, and within two days of seeing the tree he came to Haines with a plan for a sculpture that was eventually called “My Relatives.”

Russell Beebe carving — Russell Beebe is shown carving the sculpture called “My Relatives” from a white oak tree, 2003. *(photo montage by James Royce Young)*

Russell Beebe wrote of his design for “My Relatives”: “At first glance the big tree gave me an indication of how my design would evolve, from the juncture of the first large branch down to the base. The very uniform trunk offered freedom to create while the divergence of the branch above would dictate form. This and Mr. Haines’ desire that the sculpture honor the Tree, our Wildlife and the Native Peoples who once lived in the area gave me the spectrum to create.”

Beebe introduced stone worker Jesse Biesanz to Haines at this time, and Biesanz later went on to build the stone base for each “We Are Here” sculpture.

When “My Relatives” was complete, Beebe invited his friend Grandma Aggie to see the carving. This was when she and Matthew Haines first met.

Opposition and resolution

Now back to the alder tree and the proposed building at North Main Street and Lithia Way. There was still the large group opposed to new downtown development, with enough power to have stopped several other downtown projects in previous years. The building project was appealed to the City Council by opponents. Appeals like this tend to be contentious.

At the Council meeting, Russell Beebe presented plans for the alder tree carving. Grandma Aggie followed him and spoke on behalf of the project. She said that Haines’ plan for the “We Are Here” sculpture was a small but important step toward honoring Native people. Haines and Beebe both told me they could feel the entire energy of the room shift as Grandma Aggie was talking.

“This is about healing.”
Grandma Aggie

She reminded council members and the audience that people whose ancestral lands these are were nearly wiped out. Since then, Native people have been consistently ignored and marginalized for more than 150 years. Despite the painful history, she said, Native people have returned to the Rogue Valley and Ashland.

Then she said something that cut through all the bickering. “You wouldn’t know that we exist. There’s nothing visible of Native people anywhere here except Dead Indian Road.” Beebe described that moment to me: “Everyone was stunned and that was the end of the protest.”

After her talk, the City Council approved the building and sculpture with little opposition.

Russell Beebe envisions “We Are Here” design

Russell Beebe wrote in 2006: “The original design for this sculpture evolved in just a few hours as I sat by the living alder tree. With Mr. Haines’ thought of ‘family’ in mind, the ‘story of old’ came through in my sketches and remained constant regardless of changes made. All I had to do was visualize and understand what the tree showed me, then let my hands do their work.” Beebe felt that his design represents “the story told by the old ones about our duty to walk in balance with nature.”

When I interviewed Beebe in June of 2020, he added to the story. He told me he was sitting in a bar and restaurant by the alder tree that day. “So I got a hamburger and I sat at the table and just looked at the alder. By the time I finished the hamburger, I had my design figured out. It was that quick.”

Blessing the alder tree

Haines asked Grandma Aggie to perform a ceremony of blessing and thanks for the alder tree before it was cut down (see first photo above). A few people gathered with her on October 29, 2004 for ceremony and prayer.

She wrote in her 2015 book that “we talked with that tree about what we were going to do with it, that it is going to be made into perpetuity. ‘We are going to carve on you, we’re going to make you beautiful. You’ll live forever, but we’re going to move you up here.’ We talked to it like a human being.”

This intentional beginning with ceremony started “We Are Here” on the path to be more than just a statue. When the wood carving was installed on North Main Street in 2006, there was ceremony in the context of a community celebration. When the wood carving was moved to Hannon Library at Southern Oregon University in 2012, there was ceremony. When the bronze replica was installed on North Main Street in 2013, there was ceremony.

Why is the Alder tree referred to as “mother?”

According to Beebe, the alder is not a long-lived tree, but it plays an important role in the natural process of regeneration, a role so valuable that it is called “mother.” Alder trees grow along streams all over the world. When flood or fire destroys the stream-side landscape, alders are among the first large plants to grow back. They grow quickly and spread their branches and leaves. Slower growing trees and plants then get established beneath the protection of the “mother.” With a smile, Beebe ended this story: “And after about 60 years, she says ‘okay children, you’re on your own.’ Then she’s done.”

Moving the alder tree to Russell Beebe’s studio

When the alder tree was cut, it turned out that it was near the end of its short life. According to the arborist who took it down, it had about ten years to live.

Beebe said, “When they cut the tree down, they were going to lower it down on to Main Street, so they stopped traffic for a bit. When they lowered it down on to the street, whoever was at the controls [of the crane] let go a little too quick, so they kind of thumped it on the street. When they did that, it broke a big branch off, one that was going to be part of my design. So, what to do? My original design was quite different.”

“Faced with this tree with a broken limb, my original design was gone,” Beebe continued. “I had to go with what was given me. So everything changed and evolved, and was way better because of that broken limb. Now everything kind of emerges from the tree, represents the soul of the tree.”

Russell Beebe carves the alder tree

This is how the alder tree looked when it arrived at Russell Beebe’s studio.

Alder tree used for "We Are Here" — The Gateway Alder tree at Russell Beebe’s studio, before carving, November 30, 2004. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

I had the honor of being able to spend several hours with Beebe at his rural outdoor studio. When I visited, he was nearing completion of an Iroquois teaching pole carving for someone in upstate New York. Here is a photo of it in process.

Russell Beebe sculpture — Iroquois Teaching Pole, carved by Russell Beebe. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

Unlike the straight Iroquois teaching pole that was laid on its side for carving, the “We Are Here” sculpture with its large branches was carved with the tree upright. Beebe set up scaffolding around the tree and began carving from the top down.

"We Are Here" - Russell Beebe carving, 2005 — Russell Beebe stood high on scaffolding as he began carving “We Are Here.” This photo shows him carving the stag, February 21, 2005. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

The Shasta Man and Takelma Woman are both toward the top of the sculpture. Before he started on the Takelma Woman modeled on Grandma Aggie, Beebe asked Aggie to bring him traditional Takelma garb, a cradle board and whatever else she wanted to bring. He said, “I wanted to get that right.”

Russell Beebe’s tools. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

As he was carving the tree, neighbors would stop and look and ask questions about it. “One of my neighbors suggested putting more fish in there,” Beebe told me. At that point, the main salmon was partially carved. The neighbor asked, “Wouldn’t that look cool to have more fish? What do you think about that?” Beebe thought about it, and decided to add more fish. He liked that it became a community sculpture, not just “his” sculpture.

Beebe wrote: “The more than 1,000 hours I spent carving this piece were delightful.” “Emotionally, this work brings forward those ancient ones of my own distant native roots and touches my heart. I feel the steady drumbeat of the seasons.” Through this wood carving, Beebe tried to capture not only the spiritual history (and current presence) of Rogue Valley First Nations people, but also the spiritual history of his own people.

His grandfather was his first teacher in carving wood, and also introduced him to tribal traditions. Beebe is a descendant of the Anishinaabe tribe in the north central United States and south central Canada. As an adult, Beebe received his “spirit name” Wabashkigamash. He tries to express his Native traditions in his work and in how he lives his life.

Russell Beebe carving "We Are Here" — Russell Beebe carving “We Are Here,” showing the scaffolding that surrounds it, 2006. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

What is represented on the alder tree carving

Beebe said, “Where we live now, once were the Takelma, the Shasta and many other tribes. I couldn’t put them all on here, but I included those two.” The Shasta Man and Takelma woman each have a child, who represent the future.

Representing the Takelma is Grandma Aggie as she looked in her 30s, wearing her regalia. Beebe told me with a laugh, “I got the blessing from her daughter Nadine. She came out one day and looked at my depiction of the 30-year-old [Aggie]. She said, ‘That’s mom.’ So I got it right.”

Then he included many animals without whom the Native people would not have survived: the deer (stag), the eagle, the salmon, bear, beaver, coyote, snake and cougar. The spirit figure of Raven is included. “The dragonfly was put there just for Aggie,” he added. The dragonfly is one of her spirit animals.

Grandma Aggie wrote, “The First Nations include not only the Takelma, Shasta, Tututni and other tribes, but also the Salmon Nation, the Bear Nation, the Tree Nations, and all the species of life in this region.” She had a true “big picture” perspective embracing all of life, as I learned when I attended her deeply emotional memorial service in 2019.

The Native people had ceremonies for all of these animal nations. Beebe asked if I was familiar with the Salmon Ceremony, which Grandma Aggie reestablished in the Rogue Valley in 1994 for the first time since the 1856 Trail of Tears. I told him I had seen a video about the Salmon Ceremony during Grandma Aggie’s 2019 memorial service. He said, “That’s all part of Indian life, everybody having a few bites of the first salmon caught, and then returning the skin and bones back to the river. There’s a thank you in that, a reverence, which is what this [sculpture] is all about.”

“We Are Here” is a Spirit Pole and Prayer Pole

“Attaching an Eagle feather to this really turned it into a Spirit Pole, as Aggie terms it. For us, seeing the Eagle feather on there also turned it into a Prayer Pole. Individuals would pray there. Sometimes we would have ceremony.”
Russell Beebe

Russell Beebe was honored by being asked to place a sacred Eagle feather high on the sculpture. Traditionally, the presence of an Eagle feather is what transforms this wood carving into a spirit pole or prayer pole.

"We Are Here" eagle feather — “We Are Here” eagle feather, hanging on Takelma Woman’s hand on the wood carving at its original site. (photo from Russell Beebe collection, circa 2006)

Grandma Aggie wrote: “Our Native students that are going to come to Southern Oregon University, they need something here to show them that there’s been Native people here on this land.” “Also, to remember the ancient ones of the land would be this tree, to stand in perpetuity in honor of the First Nation people.” “So there is now a spirit pole in Ashland that came through an attorney, Matthew Haines.”

“We Are Here” was called “a memorial to the First Nations” by Matthew Haines, who funded it. Through the presence of the Eagle feather and ceremony, it has become much more than a memorial.

Beebe described the meaning of spirit pole to me. It honors the spirits of the Native people and wildlife who lived in this area long ago. But it is not just about remembering the past. He added, “In our minds, they are still here.” The spirits of those who are gone, both people and Creation, are still with us in the present day.

When the Eagle feather is attached, “We Are Here” is also a living place of prayer, as much as any church or temple. Through the years, many community prayers and ceremonies have taken place at this prayer pole. Native people also come individually or in small groups to offer prayers here.

Installation day photos

“We Are Here” was moved from Russell Beebe’s studio to its location on North Main Street on September 19, 2006. The move included ceremony by Grandma Aggie and Dan Wahpepah.

Short excerpt of Grandma Aggie and Dan Wahpepah singing at “We Are Here” installation on September 19, 2006. (from video by Julie Norman)

Dedication day: September 30, 2006

“Everywhere I go around the world, I pray.
I don’t care what religion you belong to.
My church is the sky and earth, and I pray for all in between the sky and earth.
We’re all part of the fabric.”
Agnes Baker Pilgrim

"We Are Here" dedication day flyer — Flyer for the dedication of “We Are Here” on September 30, 2006. *(flyer artwork and photos by James Royce Young)*

“We Are Here” was dedicated September 30, 2006, a day the Ashland City Council had recognized as First Nations Day.

The 1856 Oregon Trail of Tears

Beyond the meaning of the sculpture itself, the dedication had special meaning because it was the 150^thanniversary of the local native people’s Trail of Tears. Between 1852 and 1856, there were many battles in Southern Oregon between settlers and the Native Americans who were defending their ancestral land. Suffering from diseases, hunger and deaths from the fighting, in 1856 the remaining Shasta and Takelma (as well as other tribes) were forcibly marched to the Siletz Indian Reservation, 150 miles north along the Oregon coast.

In her 2015 book, Grandma Aggie gave emotional resonance to the dry facts listed above. She wrote, “I remember how hard it was when I was a child growing up because in those times, in Lincoln County, there was signs on restaurants and different places where Indians and dogs weren’t allowed. And you know, I grew up from that era, but I am not bitter about it. What was is what was. I know I am limited. I can only change right now. I can’t change anything a minute ago, an hour ago, a week ago, or a year ago, so I know I am limited. So, what I did is I forgave all that in my background, of what happened to our people. The Trail of Tears that started here in Southern Oregon in 1856. They were all gathered up here, then run north. They lived here for over 22,000 years, and they actually felt that the Creator had given them this land, it was theirs eternally, forever and forever, as long as the grass grew and the water flowed. It was a hard time for my people in those times, you know, going up in rough terrain in inclement weather. They were force-marched in stormy weather with just moccasins on their feet. They could take one thing, and most of them just carried food wrapped in what they could carry. So then their moccasins wore out, and the elders fell along the wayside. The young were taught to take care of the elders, so they would run back and pick them up, and they were beaten. The guards told them that if they did that again they’d just leave the elders by the wayside for the animals to eat.

“It was a terrible time for them, over two hundred miles of this land going north and to trails where there was no trails. I can fathom how hard it was. And then, after all that journey, when they did get up to Siletz, the agent had used up a lot of the money, so there wasn’t enough blankets to go around. There wasn’t enough food, and many of them perished. It was awful. It’s a wonder I sit here.”

Grandma Aggie's book — Grandma Aggie’s book from Ashland Library (photo by Peter Finkle, 2021)

Dedication Day gathering and ceremony

Dedication day included a three-hour gathering at Briscoe School, which opened with a song by Whistling Elk Drum circle, led by Dan Wahpepah.

Whistling Elk Drum group, Ashland — Whistling Elk Drum circle plays at the “We Are Here” dedication September 30, 2006. Dan Wahpepah is wearing the black shirt. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

Speakers included Robert Owens Greygrass (Master of Ceremonies), Agnes Baker Pilgrim (Takelma elder), Lloyd Matthew Haines (father and funder of the Project), Russell Beebe (sculptor), Kate Jackson (City of Ashland representative), Dennis Martinez (topic: Indigenous Stewardship), Robert Kentta (topic: Trail of Tears and cultural restoration), Thomas Doty (story teller), John Michael Greer (topic: Takilma language), Shelly Vendiola (topic: youth and poverty) and SOU Professor David West (topic: history and the present day).

Several hundred people then walked from Briscoe School along North Main Street to the “We Are Here” site at the corner of North Main and Lithia Way. A dedication, with prayers and blessing ceremony, followed at the site. Grandma Aggie blessed the sculpture and the assembled people. The ceremony included a Native American tobacco offering.

Grandma Aggie in front of “We Are Here” on dedication day, September 30, 2006. Notice that the Takelma woman on “We Are Here” is modeled on Aggie when she was in her 30s. *(photo by James Royce Young)*

After he described how meaningful the dedication was, Beebe laughed and told me, “I have a funny story for you. I talked to you about offering tobacco. My son brought a pouch of tobacco [to the dedication] and we started making tobacco offerings at the base of the sculpture. Many of the people gathered had no idea what we were doing, but they wanted to do it also. Soon all the stones at the base of the sculpture were covered with tobacco. I was hanging around after everybody had left. Along comes this homeless guy. He couldn’t believe his eyes. He wasn’t looking at the sculpture at all. He looked at that tobacco, and he was just scooping it up, like ‘Thank you God.’ That was the giving back part; that was just wonderful.”

Two problems surfaced after a few years

The story of “We Are Here” does not end with the 2006 dedication. After installation, the sculpture was donated to the City of Ashland as public art. Because of its uniqueness, Beebe performed maintenance on the sculpture annually. Within a couple years, he began to see problems.

"We Are Here" maintenance — Russell Beebe performing annual maintenance of “We Are Here” wood carving. (from Russell Beebe collection)

The first problem was unanticipated. Do you remember that a large branch broke off when the tree was “thumped on the street” during its removal process? The site of the broken branch is now the head of a stag in the carving. Beebe didn’t realize until after the carving was completed that due to the “thump,” a crack extended into the center of the tree. He told me “every spring we would see mold developing.”

The second problem is that alder is a soft wood. The crack complicated the problem of maintaining a soft wood out in the elements. It required extensive maintenance, and Haines was the one who funded Beebe to do that. Beebe told me, “Often I had to recarve where it was starting to rot in spots.”

At some point, Beebe and Haines realized that “We Are Here” would deteriorate irreparably if it were exposed to the elements for many years. It would have to be moved indoors in order to survive long-term.

Haines told the Ashland Tidings in 2012 that “it was important to him to keep some version of the sculpture downtown. He said the sculpture is a symbol of reconciliation and healing.” In this, he was in sync with the vision expressed by both Beebe and Grandma Aggie.

“The ‘We Are Here’ sculpture has had a healing effect on the valley.”
Russell Beebe

Here is a link to Part 2 of this series of articles about “We Are Here.” It describes the bronze replica that was crafted and now stands on North Main Street.

Here is a link to Part 3 of this series of articles about “We Are Here.” It describes the challenge of moving the original wood carving from North Main Street to Southern Oregon University Hannon Library.

References for Parts 1, 2 and 3:

Aldous, Vickie. “Downtown sculpture to be cast in bronze,” Ashland Tidings, April 18, 2012. (accessed 5/21/2020)

Aldous, Vickie. “Native people sculpture will move to SOU,” Ashland Tidings, November 3, 2012. (accessed 5/21/2020)

Anon. “We Are Here,” Book Marks, Hannon Library Newsletter, Volume 24, No. 1, Fall 2013.

Anon. “Takelma Tribe,” NPS.gov. (accessed 1/10/2021) https://www.nps.gov/orca/learn/historyculture/takelma-tribe.htm

Anon. “Takelma Legends,” native-languages.org website. (accessed January 17, 2021)
http://www.native-languages.org/takelma-legends.htm

Anon. Ashland City Council Land Acknowledgment, February 2, 2021.

Ayers, Jane. “’Grandma Aggie’ leaves a lasting impact,” Ashland Tidings, December 3, 2019. (accessed May 21, 2020)

Beebe, Russell. Interview and personal communication, June 2, 2020 and other dates. Thank you, Russell, for sharing your photos with me.

Beebe, Russell. Website, accessed May 14, 2020.
http://www.russellbeebe.com/index.html#

Bernhagen, Jaimie. “’We Are Here’ Event with Oregon Shakespeare Festival,” Red Earth Descendants website, October 14, 2012. (accessed May 21, 2020)

Biesanz, Jesse. Interview and personal communication, August 2020.

Cardwell, James, “Southern Oregon Pioneers,” Oregon Sentinel, Jacksonville, July 8, 1882, page 3, from http://truwe.sohs.org/files/cardwell.html

Darling, John. “’Grandma Aggie’ dies at 95,” Ashland Tidings, November 27, 2019. (accessed May 21, 2020)

Doty, Thomas. Website, accessed May 14, 2020.
https://www.dotycoyote.com/culture/sculpture_installation_1.html

Gray, Dennis J. “The Takelma and Their Athapascan Neighbors,” University of Oregon Anthropological Papers, No. 37, 1987.

Haines, Lloyd Matthew. Interview and personal communication, May 13, 2020 and other dates.

Langford, Jack. Interview and personal communication, May 20, 2020 and other dates.

Martin, Nadine. Many thanks for reviewing the article.

Norman, Julie. Video of the dedication day and dedication ceremony.

Norman, Julie. Interview and personal communication, August 2020 and other dates.

Also available directly on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eD73OiZBf6Q

Pilgrim, Agnes Baker (Taowhywee). Grandma Says: Wake Up World, Blackstone Publishing, 2015.

Pilgrim, Agnes Baker. Website, accessed May 14, 2020.
http://www.agnesbakerpilgrim.org/Page.asp?PID=108

Rose, Karen. May 25, 2002. “Takelma Indians: An Essay on Native Americans in the Rogue River Area,” Hugo Neighborhood Association & Historical Society, Hugo, OR. For the entire article go to http://www.hugoneighborhood.org/takelma.htm

Sapir, Edward. “Notes on the Takelma Indians of Southwestern Oregon,” American Anthropologist, Vol. 9, No. 2, April-June, 1907.

Valencia, Mandy. “We Are Here,” Ashland Daily Tidings, December 21, 2012.
https://ashlandtidings.com/archive/-we-are-here–04-27-2018

Wahpepah, Dan. Interview, August 10, 2020.

Street Scene sculpture: Who are these people?

Name of each person who modeled for Street Scene.
Life and work of sculptor Marion Young.
Complete with 35 photos!
Ashland Public Art series

Marion Young flanked by her clay models of Robert Barnett and Kate Sullivan.
(photographer unknown, photo courtesy of Robyn Jones)

sculptor Marion Young as a child — Marion Young, the future sculptor of Street Scene, as a child with her dog Bruce.
(photo by Olivia Young, photo courtesy of Robyn Jones)

Street Scene: the sculpture today

This engaging 14-foot-high bronze sculpture is located downtown on East Main Street near Pioneer Street, next to the Ashland Chamber of Commerce office and old Black Swan Theater. So far, this is my favorite sculpture in Ashland, primarily because it is filled with vibrant, life-like people. They are so life-like both because of artist Marion Young’s talent, and also because she found vibrant locals to model for her. She came to Ashland in 1988 to sculpt an earlier version of Street Scene, and lived here until her death in 2019.

Street Scene sculpture by Marion Young, on East Main Street in Ashland, Oregon. (photo by Tom Woosnam)

In this article, I will tell you how the sculpture Street Scene came to be, a little about each person who modeled for the sculpture, and give an introduction to Marion Young’s life and body of work.

Street Scene: how it came to be

Marion Young moved from Los Angeles to Ashland in order to sculpt the Street Scene commission. She was literally surrounded and inspired by the cauldron of creativity at Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF). For four years, her studio was located within the Old Scene Shop at OSF. Therefore, it is not surprising that many of the live models Young used for Street Scene were associated with OSF, most of them in the acting corps.

Marion Young working on Street Scene, at her studio in the Oregon Shakespeare Festival scene shop. (photographer unknown, photo courtesy of Matthew Haines)

Marion Young created two versions of Street Scene. The first was commissioned by Atherton Place, an elegant retirement center in Marietta, Georgia. It was 4’ wide by 9’ tall, done in white resin, and included nine people in the sculpture.

This first version of Street Scene was created for the retirement center in Atlanta, Georgia — This first version of Street Scene was created for a retirement center in Atlanta, Georgia. *(photographer unknown, photo courtesy of Matthew Haines)*

Inspired by Ashland culture, she decided to stay and sculpt a larger version of Street Scene. The larger Street Scene sculpted for Ashland is done in bronze, contains twelve people (plus three Shakespeare characters) and stands 14’ tall.

Young always used live models in her sculpting. Her “work,” however, began even before choosing the models. A lifelong student of Carl Jung’s psychology, Young thought in terms of archetypes (universal themes that influence our personalities). She began each sculpture with these themes in mind. As she envisioned Ashland’s Street Scene piece, she created specific universal characters to represent in the sculpture, she thought about relationships between the characters, and she tried to capture the spirit of Ashland.

Street Scene: Young is “discovered”

As I mentioned above, Young sculpted Street Scene in the old scene shop at OSF. “Word spread of her work as her life-size figures slowly emerged above the beams of this building’s massive interior.” The city of Ashland was at the time creating a new Downtown Development Plan. Planning Director John Fregonese appreciated the value of public art. It was Fregonese who spearheaded the 1987 renovation of the lovely Butler-Perozzi Fountain, which had deteriorated badly since its installation in Lithia Park in 1916.

Fregonese thought Street Scene would be a wonderful addition to Ashland’s downtown, and the Ashland City Council agreed. The city provided $5,000 seed money for acquiring the sculpture, but the rest of the funds had to be raised through private donations.

Street Scene: the funding challenge

The overall budget for Street Scene was $125,000, which did not leave much for Marion Young’s years of work. She was able to sell bronze casts of individual busts from the sculpture to help provide income.

Bronze contributors to Street Scene, plus hundreds more who contributed with lesser amounts.
(photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

Over 800 individuals, businesses and foundations contributed money toward the project. Many donated their services at no charge, or for a very low fee. For example, since bronze casting for the 2,000 pound statue was done at Artworks Foundry in Berkeley, California, Medford Fabrication and the Thorndike family donated all the transportation costs between Ashland and Berkeley, then helped install the sculpture.

recognition sign by Street Scene sculpture. — Recognition on the wall next to the Street Scene sculpture. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

Local attorney, businessman and art lover Lloyd Matthew Haines was Chairman of the funding committee. He was, and still is, a strong proponent of public art in Ashland. He was also a friend and strong supporter of Marion Young and her work. When funding for Street Scene fell short even after hundreds of donations, Haines contributed the balance that was needed.

Lloyd Matthew Haines and Marion Young recognized, Street Scene sculpture — Recognition on the wall next to the Street Scene sculpture. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

Street Scene: dedication on July 6, 1994

Creating and putting up the massive concrete wall that Street Scene is attached to was a huge project in itself.

Installation of the concrete wall that Street Scene is attached to.
*(photographer unknown, photo courtesy of Matthew Haines)*

Once that was done, the sculpture was attached. A community dedication took place on July 6, 1994. “As Ashland gallery owner and artist Judy Howard said at the dedication, ‘Art tells a story of a particular culture and reflects the life of those in that culture. This sculpture reflects the spirit of our community and will tell the Ashland story for generations to come.’”

Marion Young speaks at the dedication of Street Scene. Ashland Mayor Cathy Shaw looks on. *(photographer unknown, photo courtesy of Robyn Jones)*

Street Scene: who are these people?

If you have looked closely at the Street Scene sculpture, you may have already identified one or more of the local actors and residents who modeled for Young. When I decided to write about the sculpture, I thought it would be simple to find a list of the twelve people who modeled for Young. No…not simple. In fact, it has been a surprisingly long and frustrating journey.

Fortunately, I had fellow Ashlander Tom Woosnam on the journey with me. He became intrigued with Street Scene when he noticed that his good friend Lee Carrau was one of the twelve people in the statue. Woosnam and Carrau had acted together with The Palo Alto Players when they lived in California. Woosnam also recognized Rex Rabold and Shirley and Bill Patton as models for the statue, and wondered who the other eight people were. That put him on a parallel track to mine, and then we began to cooperate.

We researched on the internet and through newspaper articles. I tracked down Marion Young’s niece Robyn Jones, who helped fill in some blanks and kindly shared photos with me. Jones introduced me to Matthew Haines, the driving force behind fundraising for Street Scene. Haines was kind enough to fill in more blanks and share his collection of information and photos with me.

Getting the correct names for the two children was the most difficult part. Each time Woosnam and I thought we had the correct names, another possible name would come up. Does this article provide the definitive list? I think so. However, if we learn something new in the future, I will update the article.

Here are the names of the models for Street Scene, with a brief note about each of them, starting from the bottom of the statue:

Smaller than the humans above, the three whimsical figures at the bottom left are characters in Shakespeare’s play “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

*The Fairy Queen was modeled by Seva Anthony, aerialist and Green Show dancer for OSF.

Fairy Queen Titania in Street Scene sculpture — Seva Anthony as the Fairy Queen in Midsummer Night’s Dream. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

*Bottom was a weaver who was given a donkey’s head by the mischievous fairy Puck. Anthony de Fonte, who played Bottom in the Festival’s 1993 production of “Midsummer,” was the model.

*Peaseblossom was one of Fairy Queen Titania’s fairies who waited upon Bottom. Liz Wood (now Liz Finnegan), a Green Show dancer at OSF, modeled for Peaseblossom.

Bottom and Peaseblossom, Street Scene sculpture — Bottom (modeled by Anthony de Fonte) and Peaseblossom (modeled by Liz Wood).
*(photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)*

*Kate Sullivan, OSF actor — (The inviting spirit) With her arm extended and hand open, actor Sullivan portrays the pivotal figure who draws us in. “She is the spirit who invites us into the piece, into the magic of living.”

Virginia Kooiman, "the child," in Street scene sculpture

*Virginia Kooiman, local child — (The child) She was in kindergarten at Briscoe School. “A crack Old Maid player at age 5, she was the sculptor’s most eternally figity [sic] model and became the child of this young family. She holds a ball covered with stars.”

On the left is Virginia Kooiman at age 5, as she modeled for “the child” in Street Scene. On the right is Marion Young’s clay bust of Virginia Kooiman.
*(photographer unknown, photo courtesy of Robyn Jones)*

Marco Barricelli in Street Scene sculpture

*Marco Barricelli, OSF actor — (The hero-father) A “leading man of prodigious presence and talent,” Barricelli’s role in the sculpture is the hero-father. He was described as having “a 2000-year-old classic Roman head.”

*Marie Baxter, Hanson Howard gallery co-owner — (The ethereal young mother) Young discovered Marie Baxter at Ashland Food Coop. After they got to know each other, the gallery started to represent Young’s sculptures in Southern Oregon, and Baxter agreed to model for Street Scene.

Phyllis Courtney in Street Scene sculpture

*Phyllis Courtney, OSF actor — (The charming middle-aged aunt) Courtney renovated John and Lizzie McCall’s beautiful 1883 historic home on Oak Street and opened McCall House B&B there in 1981. Also a long-time actress, she portrays half of the charming middle-aged couple, everyone’s favorite aunt.

*Lee Carrau, writer-producer — (The charming middle-aged uncle) As a career, Carrau produced industrial and scientific films. He also loved acting for the fun of it. Young chose him to model as the other half of the charming middle-aged couple, everyone’s favorite uncle.

*BlackStar, Native American healer — (The healer, and connection to the land) Young felt called to include a Native American female elder in the sculpture. She found BlackStar (Eunice E. Rotz), born 1918 in Texas and trained as a Comanche traditional healer. BlackStar lived the last decades of her life in Southern Oregon, creating silver jewelry and providing healing, before she passed away in 2007.

BlackStar modeling for Street Scene sculpture — This photo shows BlackStar modeling for Marion Young, with the partially completed clay bust beside her. (photographer unknown, photo courtesy of Robyn Jones)

Robert Barnett in the Street Scene sculpture

*Robert Barnett, OSF actor — (The story teller) When Young saw Barnett perform in an OSF play, she thought “his Norman Rockwell face and Harold Lloyd smile were irresistible…filled with warmth and friendliness.” Barnett is signing “I love you” to the viewer.

Elijah Apilada in Street Scene sculpture

*Elijah Apilada, local child — (The typical kid) Young found an Ashland Middle School boy with a feisty but smart attitude.

*Rex Rabold, OSF actor — (The wisdom of Shakespeare) With so much of Ashland’s creative and economic life intertwined with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Young introduced these elements in her figures at the top of the sculpture. A beloved OSF actor, Rabold died in 1990 at the age of 39. In Street Scene, he modeled for Young in his role as Shakespeare’s Richard II.

At the top of Street Scene are Shirley and Bill Patton. “As the magical figure at the bottom of ‘Street Scene’ draws us into the spirit of Ashland, the sculptor wanted an elegant dancing couple at the top to take us on into life, to remind us that life has more potential than we ever dreamed possible.”

Shirley and Bill Patton in Street Scene sculpture

*Shirley Patton, OSF actor — (The elegant dancing couple) Shirley Patton has touched thousands of lives through her 75 years of acting (30 years of it at OSF), her vivacity, her kindness and her lifetime of service. Many people know Shirley as the voice of Jefferson Public Radio’s “As It Was” history spots, which she has narrated five days a week since 2005, almost 4,000 in all!

*Bill Patton, long-time OSF Executive Director (The elegant dancing couple) Bill Patton worked at OSF from 1948 to 1995, including 42 years as General Manager and then Executive Director, helping to guide OSF. After Bill died in 2011, Paul Nicholson, who followed Bill as Executive Director, said of him: “Under his astute guidance the Festival grew from 29 performances and an audience of 15,000 to 752 performances and 359,000 in attendance the year he retired. He was a gentleman in every way, kind, thoughtful and caring.” Haines recalls Young holding the intention of having Bill Patton “walk into the sunset” at the top of the sculpture, since he was only a few years from leaving his post at OSF when she sculpted him.

Marion Young’s life story and key sculptures

Sculptor Marion Young was born in California November 25, 1934 and died in Ashland April 12, 2019. She had happy years as a child living on a farm in the Oakland hills. Her niece Robyn Jones remembers Young speaking fondly of hours exploring redwood forests near her home with her collie dog Bruce at her side.

Marion Young as a child, with her dog Bruce. (photo by Olivia Young, photo courtesy of Robyn Jones)

Young grew up in a very artistic family. Her mother was a poet and musician, her father a painter and musician. She attended San Francisco State University, with a major in biology and a minor in art. Her plan was to become a medical illustrator. Instead, she became an actor. After a few years, she transitioned to co-owning a bronze artworks foundry and then an art gallery in Los Angeles with Thomas Holland, her romantic as well as business partner for a time.

Marion Young in 1956. (*photographer unknown, photo courtesy of Robyn Jones)*

Her artistic and life journey finally brought her to creating sculpture, where she was able to express all of her skills. Holland was her first sculpture teacher. She continued to study on her own, including spending months absorbing every nuance she could of Auguste Rodin’s genius through the Rodin sculpture collection at Stanford University. Young sculpted primarily in clay from live models.

Her biography notes that she was “an ardent student of the writing and thought of [Carl] Jung.” This quote from Carl Jung, a favorite of Marion Young, expresses in very philosophical language what Young tried to capture in the physicality of her sculptures.

“Whoever speaks in primordial images speaks in a thousand voices: he enthralls and overpowers, while at the same time he lifts the idea he is seeking to express out of the occasional and the transitory into the realm of the ever-enduring. He transmutes our personal destiny into the destiny of mankind, and evokes in us all those beneficent forces that ever and anon have enabled humanity to find refuge from every peril and to outlive the longest night.” Carl Gustav Jung

I had to read Jung’s quote at least three times to understand it! And then three more times to understand how it could apply to Marion Young’s Street Scene sculpture. The depth of her study of human nature helps take the feeling of the sculpture out of “the occasional and the transitory” and out of the “personal” into a universal feeling.

How did she achieve that depth of understanding human nature? From what I have learned of her, it was a combination of factors. As with most of us, it began with the role models provided by her parents, who were artists in multiple mediums of expression and creativity. It expanded as Young took dance lessons beginning at age four. Later, as an actor after graduation from college, she explored the emotional and psychological aspects of human nature from the inside of multiple roles. After beginning to sculpt, she took a deep dive into exploring the physical aspects of what it means to be human. How deep? How about not only taking anatomy, but also dissecting human bodies at UCLA School of Medicine? As her biography put it: “In order to obtain the kind of knowledge necessary for her work, Marion found that she had ultimately to perform her own dissections on the human body.”

That experience led to the creation of her sculpture called Essentia, which is now at the Columbia University School of Medicine (in the anatomy department). The sculpture accurately portrays the anatomy of a young woman, both muscles and fascia without the covering of skin. It captures the beauty of the essential, beneath the surface. Young went on to capture the beauty of essential aspects of human nature in Street Scene, but in a different way.

Essential sculpture by Marion Young — Essentia sculpture by Marion Young, front and back views.
(photographer unknown, photo courtesy of Robyn Jones)

How Marion worked: insights from the Van Gogh bust

If you visit the Ashland Library, you have surely noticed another one of Marion Young’s sculptures. Just within the library front doors is a life size bust of Vincent Van Gogh. Henry Woronicz, former OSF actor and Artistic Director, served as the model. But he didn’t just “sit there,” nor did she “just sculpt.” This sculpture provides a good example of her deep preparation for a piece, combining her Jungian studies, her theater background, and her desire to capture universal rather than superficial feelings.

First, Woronicz and Young created a half-hour script edited from Van Gogh’s letters to his brother Theo. Then, studying Van Gogh’s paintings, Young reproduced his bedroom in her studio, using OSF props. Only after all this preparation did Woronicz get into his “role,” sit on the “set,” and model for Young!

Henry Woronicz as Van Gogh, sculpture by Marion Young

Bronze bust on the left and clay model on the right, of “Henry Woronicz as Vincent Van Gogh,” by Marion Young. (photographers unknown, photo on left courtesy of Robyn Jones, photo on right courtesy of Matthew Haines)

How Marion worked: insights from Shirley Patton

As mentioned above, Shirley and Bill Patton both modeled for Young’s Street Scene sculpture. Shirley shared these memories with me that illuminate Young’s internal and external process.

I was an accidental model. Marion had chosen her models, I believe, in a number of ways. She had a cast of characters in mind and found the people through conversations with friends and townspeople, and she was influenced by the Festival’s plays. It was in the OSF souvenir program that she discovered Bill. She was attracted to Bill’s face and bone structure. She’d had in mind a couple out on the town, enjoying the area’s nightlife. Dressed up with a tux and top hat! (Not our usual dress for an evening in town, is it?)
I think I was introduced to Marion after the work had begun. I came by where they were working to pick him up one afternoon, and she looked at me and said, “Oh, you can be Bill’s dancing partner!” So I was added to her “cast.” And I must confess that I’m glad it is me up there rather than another model.
I remember the time Marion asked me to stop by her makeshift studio in the old scene shop building. She was almost done with Bill’s likeness but she wasn’t satisfied. It was missing a certain “spark.” She said she had noticed that when I’d stop by the studio during his sittings that his eyes lit up, so she wanted me to come to his appointments so she could watch us interact.
She was looking for an elusive quality that would bring animation to a static piece of clay. It’s a mystery to me but Marion kept at it until there was life in Bill’s eyes. There was a difference. She said it was the spark she was looking for. She’d noticed that it came when we were laughing and talking together. Now that was a dear thing for her to say.
Shirley Patton

The Journey

Marion Young’s major unfinished work is called The Journey. She described it as “about 60 inches tall with a walnut base. Each of the 12 characters that circle this sculpture is a representation of one of the archetypes of the journey of life.” As in Street Scene, Young used OSF actors as models. Sadly, Young developed mental health problems and early dementia at a relatively young age, and quit sculpting shortly before she completed The Journey.

Matthew Haines learned of The Journey from Young’s niece Robyn Jones. Jones told Haines it was still in clay form, and was in the basement at a friend’s house. Haines retrieved the unfinished sculpture and brought it to local sculptor Jack Langford to repair. Now, in May 2020, Langford is casting it in bronze at his Talent studio.

Closing Words

Ashland enriched Marion Young’s later years, and she continues to enrich Ashland beyond her time on earth. Each year, thousands of people see and are moved by her Street Scene sculpture on East Main Street and her Van Gogh bust at the Ashland Library.

Marion Young's signature on Street Scene sculpture — Marion Young’s signature on the Street Scene sculpture. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

Label at bottom of Street Scene sculpture. — Sign below the sculpture: “Street Scene, a portrait of Ashland.” (photo by Peter Finkle, 2020)

“Stay tuned” for more articles about public art in Ashland.

References:

Quotes not credited are from unsigned written information about Street Scene and about Marion Young, provided to me by Robyn Jones and Matthew Haines.

Darling, John. “‘Street Scene’ sculptor dies,” Ashland Tidings, June 21, 2019.

Haines, Lloyd Matthew. Personal communications, photographs, written documents.

Jones, Robyn Michele. Marion Young’s obituary, CaringBridge website, accessed April 2020.
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/marionlenoreyoung

Jones, Robyn Michele. Personal communications, photographs, written documents.

Patton, Shirley. Personal communication.

Shippen, Julie. “City primes bronze art project,” Medford Mail Tribune, April 14, 1989

TJT. “Erecting public art is a monumental task,” Ashland Daily Tidings, July 14, 1994.

(Part 3 of 3: Wood carving at SOU Hannon Library, stories from 2012 to 2020)

38 photos!How the 20′ tall sculpture was moved.Every carving on sculpture described.Quotes from Grandma Aggie.Ashland Public Art Series.

“We Are Here” alder carving moved, December 18, 2012

A new base for “We Are Here” at library

A creation story on the base

Carved wood benches for “We Are Here” at library

Symbolism in “We Are Here”

Takelma Woman and child

Shasta Man and child

Canada Goose

Stag (Deer)

Bird in Grandma Aggie’s hand

Eagle

Dragonfly

Salmon

Bear

Coyote

Beaver

Snake

Cougar or Mountain lion

Raven spirit figure

Closing words

Heartfelt thanks

References for Parts 1, 2 and 3:

(Part 2 of 3: Bronze replica on North Main Street, stories from 2011 to 2020)

Honoring Rogue Valley Native Americans.Making of the bronze replica. 34 photos.Artist: Jack Langford.Ashland Public Art Series.

Summary of “We Are Here” – Part 1

From wood to bronze, the story continues…

Jack Langford

Bronze casting of “We Are Here”

Two changes from the wood sculpture to the bronze replica

A memorable day

The bronze replica base

Installation and Dedication, May 2013

Detail photos of bronze replica

References for Parts 1, 2 and 3:

(Part 1 of 3: Original wood carving on North Main Street, stories from 2004 to 2012)

Honoring Rogue Valley Native Americans.Creation of the original wood carving.Introducing Grandma Aggie.The 1856 Oregon Trail of TearsSculptor: Russell Beebe.Ashland Public Art Series.

Setting the scene

What is “We Are Here?”

Where is “We Are Here?”

The first challenge

An inner calling

How Matthew Haines first met Russell Beebe and Grandma Aggie

Opposition and resolution

Russell Beebe envisions “We Are Here” design

Blessing the alder tree

Why is the Alder tree referred to as “mother?”

Moving the alder tree to Russell Beebe’s studio

Russell Beebe carves the alder tree

What is represented on the alder tree carving

“We Are Here” is a Spirit Pole and Prayer Pole

Installation day photos

Dedication day: September 30, 2006

The 1856 Oregon Trail of Tears

Dedication Day gathering and ceremony

Two problems surfaced after a few years

Here is a link to Part 2 of this series of articles about “We Are Here.” It describes the bronze replica that was crafted and now stands on North Main Street.

Here is a link to Part 3 of this series of articles about “We Are Here.” It describes the challenge of moving the original wood carving from North Main Street to Southern Oregon University Hannon Library.

References for Parts 1, 2 and 3:

Name of each person who modeled for Street Scene.Life and work of sculptor Marion Young.Complete with 35 photos!Ashland Public Art series

Street Scene: the sculpture today

Street Scene: how it came to be

Street Scene: Young is “discovered”

Street Scene: the funding challenge

Street Scene: dedication on July 6, 1994

Street Scene: who are these people?

Marion Young’s life story and key sculptures

How Marion worked: insights from the Van Gogh bust

How Marion worked: insights from Shirley Patton

The Journey

Closing Words

“Stay tuned” for more articles about public art in Ashland.

References:

(Part 3 of 3: Wood carving at SOU Hannon Library,
stories from 2012 to 2020)

38 photos!
How the 20′ tall sculpture was moved.
Every carving on sculpture described.
Quotes from Grandma Aggie.
Ashland Public Art Series.

(Part 2 of 3: Bronze replica on North Main Street,
stories from 2011 to 2020)

Honoring Rogue Valley Native Americans.
Making of the bronze replica.
34 photos.
Artist: Jack Langford.
Ashland Public Art Series.

(Part 1 of 3: Original wood carving on North Main Street,
stories from 2004 to 2012)

Honoring Rogue Valley Native Americans.
Creation of the original wood carving.
Introducing Grandma Aggie.
The 1856 Oregon Trail of Tears
Sculptor: Russell Beebe.
Ashland Public Art Series.

Name of each person who modeled for Street Scene.
Life and work of sculptor Marion Young.
Complete with 35 photos!
Ashland Public Art series