The iconic figure of "Fame” was produced at the J.L. Mott Iron Works, circa 1880. Collection of Stewart Stender and Deborah Davenport.
:Fun and fanciful forms that once graced the tops of barns and buildings dotting America's landscape, weathervanes were quick to become highly sought-after examples of Americana. Today, they are the backbone of virtually every important folk art collection. The diverse range of forms, created in an equally diverse range of materials, run the gamut from commercially produced molded copper examples to handmade wooden and sheet metal objects.
The most familiar forms are the highly recognizable three-dimensional horses, roosters, rams and cows produced by makers such as Fiske, Cushing, Rochester, Harris and Mott. Equally desirable are the unique handmade weathervanes that were often fabricated in the backs of the barns that they would soon grace.
"Wind & Whimsy: Weathervanes and Whirligigs from Twin Cities Collections" at the Minneapolis Institute of Art (MIA) presents more than 60 examples in an all-encompassing exhibition representing Nineteenth and Twentieth Century forms. It is on view through April 13.
The varied selection of weathervanes and whirligigs, in many cases representing some of the most desirable forms ever produced, were culled from the collections of the MIA, the Hennepin History Museum and the private collections of several museum supporters, including MIA trustees John Driscoll, Stewart Stender and Deborah Davenport, Mary Ingerbrand-Pohlad, and local collectors Carolyn and Bob Nelson.
The Weathervane
The graceful wrought iron Archangel Gabriel weathervane from 1857 sets "the standard for showing folk art in a fine art context,” says Christopher Monkhouse. Originally mounted on the Winslow House, a "frontier” hotel in Minnesota, it attracted "curious onlookers from miles around eager to see a gold plated work of art.” Collection of the Hennepin History Museum.
When the history of the weathervane is considered, today's Americana collectors would likely generalize their production period as late Nineteenth to early Twentieth Century, although handmade vanes extend as far back as the early Eighteenth Century. Europeans, especially the French and Dutch, would cite Sixteenth and Seventeenth Century examples. Preceding these are the quadrant-shaped bronze weathervanes from the Ninth Century that have been discovered by archeologists in Sweden and Norway, where similar examples remain in use today.
History reveals, however, that the first known weathervane was created by the Greeks in 48 BC under the supervision of astronomer Andronikos of Kyrrhos. Although conceived of as a weather station, the octagonal marble Horologian, or "Tower of the Winds," featured a full-bodied figure of Triton (half man and half fish with a rod in his hand) at its pinnacle. As with modern vanes, the figure, believed to have been as long as 8 feet, pointed into the wind — although it rotated with a portion of the structure to which it was affixed. The directionals, however, were not hemispherically oriented; the vane instead pointed to one of eight ornate friezes depicting images of the "wind deities." The elaborate structure survives in Athens today, although little is known about the missing Triton vane — perhaps it fell victim to the earliest known weathervane thief or succumbed to the ravages of time.
The weathervane's documented history in America extends back to the Seventeenth Century. The earliest recorded weathervane, a "weathercock" made in Holland and brought to America in 1656, was mounted on the Dutch Reformed Church in Albany, N.Y. Still in use today, it is positioned on a peak between the spires of what is now known as the First Church.
