A Toledo-based sculptor known for creating pieces honoring Black history has been selected to design Cincinnati's newest monument. The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in Ohio (NSCDA-Ohio) selected Austen Brantley to craft a memorial to women veterans that will replace a forgotten memorial from the 1980s.
"We're excited that it's an Ohio artist who's doing an Ohio memorial," Kathryn Dierckes, recording secretary with the NSCDA-Ohio Board of Managers, tells WVXU. "What we noticed about his work is that even though sculpture is a more static art form, somehow he is able to convey emotion through it — so emotion, beauty and humanity in the faces of the figures that he creates."
Brantley was selected from a pool of more than 60 applicants who submitted their portfolios. A panel comprised of NSCDA-Ohio, art experts, community members and veterans chose a handful of finalists to create design concepts.
"His concept was more intimate and more interactive than the other concepts that we received. His idea, it draws the visitor into the memorial, rather than just being an outside observer of it. His work is visually but also emotionally engaging to the viewer," Dierckes says.
The Dames want to create a memorial to go in Eden Park, near the Vietnam War Memorial on Victory Parkway, across from the Twin Lakes area. It will replace a forgotten monument and since-removed tree that were dedicated in 1985.
"We're not at a final design yet," Dierckes says, adding the group expects to have that in time to unveil it on Veterans Day in November. "It is likely to then be finished for full installation by June 12, 2027, and that date is important because that is the State of Ohio Women Veterans Day declared by Governor DeWine."
At the time the original marker was placed, the Dames society said its research indicated it was the first memorial to women veterans in the nation.
"We are proud that Cincinnati is home to the first memorial in the United States to honor women veterans, and we are proud to partner with our local community, especially our veterans, to create a meaningful new monument honoring women's contributions and service to our country," Dierckes concludes.
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Austen Drake Brantley (@austenbrantley)
About Austen Brantley
Brantley is a self-taught sculptor from Detroit who embraced his talent for sculpting while in high school. His public works include a memorial commemorating boxer Joe Louis; "The First Five," honoring the first Black students to attend East Tennessee State University; and "Power in the Struggle," honoring the Civil Rights movement that's part of the Freedom Monument Sculpture Park in Montgomery, Alabama, among others.
In 2023, he won the prestigious Kresge Arts Fellowship in Detroit and the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts' Emerging Artist Fellowship.
On his website, he says he "aims to provide young people with the opportunity to see themselves reflected in art while also subverting the stereotype of toxic Blackness. A powerful representation of resilience and strength, each artwork and exhibition hopes to reflect shared experience and encourages his onlookers to seek peace, honor and excellence."
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