December 19th 2023.
Renowned Chicago artist Richard Hunt passed away peacefully in his home on December 16. He was 88.
Hunt was a prolific artist, creating some of the country’s most moving sculptures and monuments. Born in 1935, Hunt was an avid member of the city’s art scene from a young age. He attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, teaching himself welding and crafting found metal objects into works of art. His work was showcased in the Museum of Modern Art, launching his expansive career.
Hunt was deeply impacted by Emmett Till’s untimely death. He used his artwork to honor Till, as well as several other historical figures such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Mary McLeod Bethune, and Ida B. Wells. In 1968, Hunt became the first African American visual artist to serve on the National Council of the Arts, appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson. He also worked as a Commissioner for the National Museum of American Art as part of the Smithsonian Institution and received dozens of awards, such as the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Sculpture Center.
His 30-foot bronze statue, Swing Low, is a tribute to the African American Spiritual and hangs in the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Hunt always valued artistic freedom, saying “I am interested more than anything else in being a free person. To me, that means that I can make what I want to make, regardless of what anyone else thinks I should make.”
To honor Hunt’s legacy, a public celebration of his life and artwork will take place in 2024, according to NBC News. He will be laid to rest in a private ceremony in Chicago. His contributions to the art world will be remembered for generations to come.
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