Last December there was a front page article in the Wall Street Journal (in the space at the bottom reserved for “off-beat” subjects) about the struggles of Chesterwood, the historic home and studio of the sculptor Daniel Chester French (1850-1931) near Stockbridge, MA in the beautiful Berkshires. French was the artist who created the monumental statue of Abraham Lincoln that dominates the Lincoln Memorial in Washington as well as another icon, the Minuteman in Lexington MA. The property is owned and operated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
The gist of the article was that Chesterwood attracts only about 10,000 visitors a year while down the road the Norman Rockwell Museum is bursting at the seams with an annual audience of over 130,000. Rockwell (1894-1978), the famed painter and illustrator, also lived and worked in Stockbridge.
Of course as the piece points out, Rockwell is a household name. Many of his works popularly are familiar and often reproduced. He is, as one of the locals quoted states, a “brand.” Daniel Chester French is not. But one solution, suggested by a Chesterwood advisory board member, is not the answer. She wants to have him be called “Dan French” - to be more relevant. By the same token, we could call Rockwell “Norm.”
Branding is not created by names; it is created by an understanding instilled in the public about what the product represents. Volvo and safety is often cited as an example. Rockwell symbolizes American wholesomeness. Daniel Chester French equals - ? No contest.
Sometimes a name can help- or harm - public identification. “Chesterwood,” named by its original owner, certainly reflects Daniel Chester French’s name for those who know it in the first place, but beyond that carries no meaning, although names like it are used for housing developments and nursing homes. When I first came to Boscobel in 2006, the sign at the entrance on the heavily travelled Route 9D declared: Boscobel Restoration, Inc., a Museum of the Decorative Arts of the Federal Period. Along with public puzzlement over use of the word “restoration” and uncertainty as to what “federal period “ meant, the name gave no clue as to what the visitor might expect beyond the brick walls. A year later we changed the name to Boscobel House & Gardens– a descriptor closer to reality.
I have visited Chesterwood. Although the house is of no special interest, the site is lovely and French’s studio fascinating. Rather than fiddle with his name, perhaps the National Trust could attach the image of French’s Lincoln Memorial statue to the Chesterwood title. Millions have marveled at the majesty of that work. It is a highly recognizable image and might serve to draw more people to its creator’s studio. But forget about challenging the Rockwell Museum in the attendance wars.
Another site devoted to an artist, his home and workplace, is the Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site in Cornish NH. Augustus Saint-Gaudens (1848-1907) was also a great American sculptor. The site is magnificent in its every aspect.
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