Mimi with Squirrel, c. 1930
Bronze
7 5/8 x 11 1/4 x 5 9/16 in
Biography
Carl Jennewein was born in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1890, one of eight children of Emilia Weber and Louis Jennewein. His father was a die engraver and permitted Paul to watch him work, which soon led to the son developing a love of drawing, engraving and etching. Jennewein was apprenticed to artisans at the Stuttgart art museum at age 13. For the next three years, he learned techniques of casting, modeling, and painting. He also took courses in art history and architectural drawing at the University of Stuttgart where he saw illustrations of work by the noted American architectural firm, McKim, Mead & White.
After moving to Hoboken, New Jersey—he became an U.S. citizen in 1915—Jennewein worked for the firm of architectural sculptors and commercial modelers, Buhler and Lauter, which was often used by McKim, Mead & White. Besides working for Buhler and Lauter, Jennewein was also taking night courses at the Art Students League, where he studied with George Bridgman and Dewitt Clinton Peters. By 1911 Jennewein began receiving his own commissions for churches and academic institutions, from which he had accumulated sufficient funds to travel back to Europe for two years. In 1916, he won the prestigious Prix de Rome award for sculpture at the American Academy, which included a three-year fellowship in Italy to study classical art.
When Jennewein returned to New York, he received several commissions, including the Caruso Panel for the Metropolitan Opera House. The Metropolitan Museum of Art also purchased his work. In 1933, Jennewein was elected to membership in the prestigious National Academy of Design and the influential Century Club. Jennewein also belonged to the National Institute of Arts and Sciences.
Jennewein’s sculptures are in the public collections of numerous institutions including: Tampa Museum of Art, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Brookgreen Gardens, Montclair Art Museum, Baltimore Museum of Art, and the Houston Museum of Fine Arts.
