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Academics

AU to Install Tolstoy Sculpture

  • November 9, 2012

WHO:

Sergey Kislayak, Russian Ambassador to the United States

Gregory Pototsky, Sculptor

Susan E. Lehrman, Advisory Chair for American University’s Initiative for Russian Culture

Peter Starr, Dean of American University’s College of Arts and Sciences

Anton Fedyashin, Executive Director of American University’s Initiative for Russian Culture

WHAT: Leo Tolstoy sculpture installation and dedication at American University

WHEN: 10:45 a.m., Thursday, November 15

WHERE: AU’s Eric Freiheim Quad outside the Battelle-Tompkins building’s steps

American University’s College of Arts and Sciences will install a bust of Russian writer Leo Tolstoy created by prominent Russian sculptor, Gregory Pototsky, near the Eric Friedheim Quad on the north side of the Battelle-Tompkins building at 10:45 a.m. on Thursday, November 15, 2012.

More than 70 of Pototsky’s busts, sculptures, and monuments grace important buildings around the world, including the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.

The gift of the sculpture was made possible following a visit by Susan E. Lehrman, Initiative for Russian Culture (IRC) advisory board chair, and Anton Fedyashin, IRC executive director, with the artist in Moscow last summer. The mission of the IRC is to increase mutual understanding between the U.S. and Russia through cultural interaction, which inspired Mr. Pototsky to offer a bronze bust of Tolstoy to American University. The bust will be dedicated during Pototsky’s scheduled visit to the United States in mid-November.

On November 15, Pototsky will spend the morning at American University starting with a master class for a group of sculpture students. Pototsky will fashion a bust of Susan E. Lehrman while demonstrating his techniques to students and speaking about his life and his work.

The Tolstoy sculpture will be unveiled at the installation ceremony attended by students and other members of the AU community and Russian dignitaries, including the Russian Ambassador to the United States, Sergey Kislayak, and descendants of Tolstoy.

American University is a leader in global education, enrolling a diverse student body from throughout the United States and nearly 140 countries. Located in Washington, D.C., the university provides opportunities for academic excellence, public service, and internships in the nation’s capital and around the world.

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