Biography captures noted sculptor Schön
Things weren’t going so well for Boston sculptor Nancy Schön. It was 1979 and she was in her studio trying to make sculptures based on Robert McCloskey’s popular children’s book “Make Way for Ducklings.” There were all sorts of problems with her duck sculptures. She was having difficulty with the poses, sizes and likenesses, and just how would she ever keep Mrs. Mallard’s head from falling off?
Sensing Schön’s discouragement, a fellow artist gave her a piece of paper upon which was written two words: “Be Strong.” She got right back to work and her sculpture, “Make Way for Ducklings,” was eventually unveiled in 1987 at Boston Public Gardens.
The inspiring story of 95-yearold Schön, whose playful sculptures are now displayed in public spaces across America (including at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville) as well as Russia, Israel and Taiwan, is told in “Be Strong: The Rise of Beloved Public Art Sculptor Nancy Schön,” the new children’s book-authorized biography from North Little Rock author Darcy Pattison.
“It’s a story of overcoming frustration,” Pattison says. “She wanted to give up, and then her friend came and gave her encouragement. I think that’s a great story for kids. Kids get frustrated and [Schön] has been there, but she kept going and she has encouraging words for them.”
Illustrated by Rich Davis of Siloam Springs and published by Mims House, the book follows Schön’s artistic journey from childhood to becoming a prolific creator of public art.
Growing up, Schön was fascinated by sculpture and graduated from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, with a degree in sculpture. Her career was put on hold after she married Donald Schön and they had four children. Still, she taught art and often made small sculptures of mothers and children. A 1979 trip to Mizpor Shalom sculpture garden in Ein Hod, Israel, however, was life-changing.
It was there that she saw chil
dren interacting with a sculpture of a woman cuddling a cat. In the book, Schön says:
“Right then, I saw what I wanted for my art. I wanted my sculptures to be outdoors in parks, where people of all ages could touch and enjoy them.”
Pattison is the author of more than 70 children’s books of fiction and nonfiction, including “Eclipse: How the 1919 Solar Eclipse Proved Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity.” She has won multiple awards and in 2007 was the recipient of the Arkansas Governor’s Award for Individual Artist. Her books have been translated into 10 languages.
Since Schön’s first public work was based on “Make Way for Ducklings,” she is well-known to many children’s book writers, Pattison says.
“That connection really resonates in the children’s literature world.”
While doing publicity for another book — 2022’s “Diego, the Galápagos Giant Tortoise: Saving a Species from Extinction” — Pattison saw Schön’s work in person and got the idea to write about her.
“I was at Crystal Bridges and saw her sculpture, ‘Tortoise and Hare,’” she recalls. “I realized it was the same lady who did the ducklings and I looked her up, found her website and emailed her.”
The two, along with Davis, collaborated on the book, which includes quotes from Pattison’s interviews with Schön as well as archival photos of the sculptor.
“She was very excited about it,” Pattison says. “We worked really closely on this.”