TAFT, Calif. (KERO) — Benjamin Victor is Taft and Kern County native and is known to be the only living artist to have three sculptures in Statuary Hall in the U.S. Capitol.
- Benjamin Victor, was born in Taft and raised in Kern County, home to one of his biggest sculptures he created, the oil worker monument, he now resides in Boise Idaho, and has artwork all across the world.
- Victor’s notable works in Kern County include the striking World War II memorial at Jastro Park, and the iconic roadrunner sculpture in Cal State Bakersfield.
- Victor is currently dedicating a fourth sculpture of civil rights leader Daisy Bates, to the US Capitol on May 8th.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
This oil worker monument and other recognizable sculptures around Kern County were created by an artist from Taft. I contacted Benjamin Victor, the artist behind the sculptures... Who gave me a Zoom guided tour of this studio and workshop.
It all started when the city of Taft was looking for an artist to do a monument for Taft's centennial celebration. It came down to 3 finalists across the country, including Taft native, Benjamin Victor.
“I put everything into that scale model, in hopes I would be the artist to do it, and sure enough I got to do this piece for my hometown and the place where I was born like this is crazy,” says Benjamin Victor.
You've probably seen his work up close, not just in Taft. His notable works include the World War II memorial at Jastro Park in Bakersfield, the iconic roadrunner sculpture at Cal State Bakersfield, and his biggest piece, the Taft Oil Worker Monument.
“The original clay for the roustabout for the Taft oil workers monument is right here, you can see the bronze process, you probably can’t tell the cause of the camera, but you know because you’ve been there but he’s a lot larger than life” continues Victor.
Victor now resides in Boise Idaho, and showed me around his clay studio on Zoom. He took me into his workshop, where he explained the process of his bronze sculptures.
He is the only living artist with three sculptures in the National Statutory Hall at the U.S. Capitol, becoming the youngest artist to earn that honor.
Even Taft Mayor Dave Noerr emphasized Benjamins' exceptional attention to detail, in his research process, and ability to effortlessly bring his creations to life.
“You can look closely at the faces of these sculptures, you can see the sincerity and the dedication of an industry, our industry in the face of a sculptor ben put it there, it means that much to him, and he means that much to us,” says Dave Noerr.
Victor is currently dedicating a fourth sculpture of civil rights leader Daisy Bates, to the U.S. Capitol on May 8th.
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