Label
2024, “Student to Artist: In Pursuit of the Artistic Practice”
Born in Topeka in 1892, Robert Merrell Gage graduated from Washburn College, where the head of the art department, Frances Davis Whittemore, encouraged him to become a sculptor. He continued his studies in New York with renowned artists Gutzon Borglum and Robert Henri. Gage then returned to Topeka and worked as a successful sculptor while also teaching at Washburn. He received prestigious monumental commissions, including a sculpture of Abraham Lincoln and a statue honoring the pioneer women of Kansas, both on the grounds of the Kansas State Capitol.