Concrete sculpture by James A. Tellen in the Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden, located in Sheboygan County, WI. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.
Amongst a natural cathedral of tall, slender trees in eastern Wisconsin stand the sometimes earnest, sometimes whimsical concrete sculptures of James A. Tellen.
Tellen moved with his adoptive family from Michigan to Sheboygan, WI when he was a child. Sheboygan remained his home for the rest of his life, and is still the home of his personal sculpture park.
In adulthood, he earned his living painting fine details on furniture while experimenting with other media in his spare time. When the Depression hit and the factory employing him cut his hours, Tellen took the opportunity to focus even more on his personal work, delving deeper into woodcarving and spending six years studying industrial art at night school. He didn’t start working in concrete, however, until 1942, at the age of 62, after an illness caused him to be hospitalized. During his recovery, he was inspired by statues in the churchyard beside the hospital, and began casting heads in concrete following his release.
Although he never had classical artistic training, Tellen believed in the importance of naturalism in art. He therefore endeavored to create likenesses that were as realistic as possible, reworking his figures over and over until he was satisfied. Rather than destroy his less successful sculptures, he would apparently bury the failures, enjoying the idea of someone someday uncovering them again.
Tellen worked on his garden until 1957, the year he passed away. Today, the park is owned and cared for by the John Michael Kohler Arts Center, and includes not only Tellen’s sculptures, but also his original log cabin, as well as more modern facilities for artists-in-residence.
For more information, and to see the source for the above text, check out the Kohler Foundation website.
Concrete sculptures by James A. Tellen in the Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden, located in Sheboygan County, WI. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.
Concrete sculpture by James A. Tellen in the Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden, located in Sheboygan County, WI. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.
Concrete sculpture by James A. Tellen in the Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden, located in Sheboygan County, WI. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.
Concrete sculpture by James A. Tellen in the Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden, located in Sheboygan County, WI. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.
Concrete sculpture by James A. Tellen in the Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden, located in Sheboygan County, WI. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.
Concrete sculpture by James A. Tellen in the Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden, located in Sheboygan County, WI. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.