Peter Nicol Russell Memorial is located in PNR building courtyard at the University of Sydney, which made in 1890 by Edger Bertram Mackennal. It is a bronze sculpture and the base is made by granite. This Memorial is a copy of PNR's St. Marylebone cemetery memorial in London[1].
Backgroud:Peter Nicol Russell was an Australian foundry owner and university benefactor. He made a gift of £50,000 to the Sydney University to found an engineering school. Therefore, the university thinks they should keep the name of this great benefactor and set up a memorial to commemorate Peter Nicol Russell[2].
According to Hutchison’s article[3], Sir Edgar Bertram Mackennal made the memorial. He was a sculptor. Although he was seen as a conservative academic sculptor by London art circles in the late 1920s, his thought was very advanced. For example, memorial has composed of two different parts. The first part means engineer is an important career and the second part is set up to commemorate the university benefactor. Students and staffs should not forget this philanthropist because he spent money to provide a good learning environment for them. The audiences could consider as students and staff of university.
The memorial faced the engineering building, which likes Russell watched the growth of the students and the engineering’s faculty. It is not only a symbol of the University of Sydney, but also a culture representative.
Reference
- ^ Sydney architecture 2015, Sydney Architecture Images- Sydney University- Peter Nicol Russell Memorial, Sydney, viewed 31 March 2015, <http://www.sydneyarchitecture.com/UNI/UNI-061.htm>
- ^ The University of Sydney, 2015, Faculty of engineering short history, The University of Sydney, viewed 31 March 2015, <http://sydney.edu.au/engineering/about/history.shtml#peter-nicol-russell>
- ^ Hutchison, N.S. 1986, ‘Mackennal, Sir Edgar Bertram (1863–1931)’, Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 10, viewed 31 March 2015, < http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/mackennal-sir-edgar-bertram-7387>