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| Swann Memorial Fountain February 2013 |
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| Swann Memorial Fountain. Salvatore C. Dimarco Jr. 12/8/68 |
Alexander Stirling Calder Sculpted the Swann Memorial
Fountain in 1924. The circular fountain is located in Logan Circle in center
city Philadelphia. From its prime location the Philadelphia Museum of Art can
be seen in the distance down the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. In the opposite
direction, is City Hall, with Calder’s father’s William Penn Statue on top. The
public library and Franklin Institute can be seen from the fountain’s other sides. The piece
was installed in 1924 and has remained there ever since. A tourist attraction now, the fountain
was not always admired. After its
installation, people wanted it removed.
Some people even played pranks on the fountain! Overtime the public became used to the
fountain, but should they have? Calder’s fountain changed Philadelphia in many
different ways.
In 1681 William Penn laid out the city of Philadelphia in an
organized way with a grid dividing certain areas into squares. Rittenhouse
square, Center Square, Washington Square, Franklin Square and Logan Square, all
make up Penn’s vision for a well designed city. Formally Northwest Square, it
was renamed to Logan Square to honor the mayor in 1825. Since the installation
of the fountain, “Logan Square” became known as “Logan Circle”(Burkhart). As seen on the
map from the early 1900’s there was no curving streets. Just a simple grid.
After the fountain was put in, the streets had to be altered for the shape and
large scale of the public piece of art. Suddenly the city revolved around the
fountain and not the other way around.
Before Swann Memorial Fountain...
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| Map of Logan Square early 1900's. Click here to see what the area looks like today |
There were harsh criticisms of the public art. One was that
the design was too European. The
Benjamin Franklin Parkway was inspired off of the Champs-Élysées in
Paris. To some, this style is beautiful and elegant, but to others it is not
the character of Philadelphia. Some wanted it to be more American and colonial (Chief Justice).
The bathing green figures in the
fountain have classical qualities found in Greek art. Some of the public was
concerned Philadelphia was trying to be something it's not.
Another criticism of the fountain was that is used too much
water. “Think of the many gallons
of water wasted everyday by that fountain! (Overworked). Wasting hundreds of gallons of water
each day would definitely not be approved by the public. The Philadelphia
Bulletin informed the public that there are horsepower engines that recycle the
water.
Some people just simply did not understand what Calder’s
fountain even symbolized. Frogs? Turtles? Gods? What did this have to do with
the city? The sculpture was allegorical and citizens could not grasp that the
figures and creatures stood for something else. One man in the Bulletin said it
gave him the “Heeby Jeebys”(New Fountain). The three figures represent the Schuylkill,
Delaware and Wissahickon Rivers and it is supposed to memorialize Dr. Cary Swann.
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Pranks were even pulled to show their discontent with the
piece of public art. One time
in 1960 a prankster put boxes of detergent in that caused the water to produce
an overabundance of foamy bubbles (shown above). The Bulletin
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Over time, society has forgotten the criticisms of the
sculpture, and have grown to enjoy it. It has become an icon for Philadelphia.
The popular show It’s Always Sunny in
Philadelphia uses the fountain in its opening credits. It is supposed to
inform the viewer that the location is indeed Philadelphia and combined with
the happy music, it portrays the city as a friendly and fun place. By making the sculpture classical, Calder brings ancient themes to the table that coexist with modern times. Used in film the fountain would not only relate to Philadelphia, but to ancient Greece as well.
Even though the fountain has become a Philadelphia favorite,
it still goes against William Penn’s original vision. Logan Circle doesn’t fit
in with the rest of the squares. The fountain altered streets and altered the
city therefore it should be destroyed. Another solution would have been to make
the fountain square and also smaller. There would still be room for the
memorial, but Penn’s grid of Philadelphia would have been unaffected. It would
also make the city have less of a European influence and have more original
Philadelphia charm. When asked his
opinion on the fountain, head of the State Supreme Court, Chief Justice Von
Moschziker stated in the Bulletin that it had “nothing relevant to things Philadelphian”. The Swann Memorial Fountain should be replaced with
a piece of public art that captures more of the essence of Philadelphia.
Works Cited
Burkhart, Kitsi. "Squaring Circle at Logan Square." The Bulletin [Philadelphia] 30 Apr. 1971: n. pag. Print.
"Chief Justice Von Moschziker Criticizes the Logan Circle Fountain." The Bulletin [Philadelphia] 17 Nov. 1924: n. pag. Print.
"New Fountain Has Gobs of 'Culture'" The Bulletin [Philadelphia] 7 Aug. 1924: n. pag. Print.
""Overworked" Water Makes Fountain Negligible." The Bulletin [Philadelphia] 30 June 1925: n. pag. Print.
