Archibald Willard’s ’Spirit of 76’ painting. From left, General Devereux’s son Harry as the young drummer, Willard’s father, Samuel and Hugh Moscher, an old farmer and soldier who ’fifed his way through the war.

Through the sale of a limited edition of giclée prints made by fine-art reproduction company Ditto Editions of Marblehead, the town plans to fund the construction of a statue commemorating the victims of the events of Sept. 11, 2001, and the subsequent War on Terror, as well as restore valuable artwork inside Abbot Hall.

Marblehead lost three residents on 9-11: Dr. Frederick Rimmele III, a passenger on United Airlines Flight 175; Bill Weems, a passenger on American Airlines Flight 11; and Erik H. Isbrandtsen, an equities trader for Cantor Fitzgerald, who was working on the 104th floor of One World Trade Center. Then, last June, the town lost Staff Sgt. Christopher Piper, a member of the Army Special Forces, from injuries he sustained from a roadside bomb attack in Afghanistan. At Town Meeting earlier this month, voters established an account to begin accepting donations for a memorial, the cost of which is estimated at $8,000-$10,000.

'Spirit' history
Originally, an untrained artist from Ohio, Archibald MacNeal Willard (1836-1918), drew the lighthearted illustration, which he entitled "Yankee Doodle."

Willard began his career as an artist with just enough talent to decorate wagons and paint furniture. As he sought ways to make money as an artist, he began to draw illustrations of the Civil War. Pam Peterson, director of the Marblehead Museum and Historical Society notes, "The 'Spirit of '76' was the peak of his artistic success."

The image of the elderly drummer symbolizes heroism during the Revolutionary War, while the image of the young boy represents a patriotic future.

Willard's illustration was well received, to the point where he was commissioned to paint the icon of heroism to promote the first official world's fair in the United States, the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia.

It took the artist one year to finish his work in time for the 100th anniversary celebration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

"The size of Willard's painting is significant, because it is intentionally large in the sense of being heroic," explains Peterson. "Don't think he normally worked in large format."

In March of 1876, hoards of crowds were drawn to "Yankee Doodle," and it was decided that the piece should remain on exhibit, but with a name change to "The Spirit of '76," so as not to be associated with an eccentric patriot popularized in the song.

Willard wrote, "I gave it the title which I had first in mind, 'Yankee Doodle.' That's the tune I hear when I look at it. But many of those who love it prefer 'The Spirit of '76,' and I am content with either." The painting found its way to Abbot Hall in 1880, when Gen. John H. Devereux of Cleveland, Ohio donated the painting to his birthplace of Marblehead.

Devereux wrote, "It seems most fitting that this particular painting of Willard's should become permanently identified with the town of Marblehead, whose history is so interwoven with Colonial and Revolutionary times and whose patriotism shone forth in every epoch of the nation's life."
Devereux's son posed for the painting as the drummer boy.

An old idea
Willard's business partner, photographer James Ryder, sold chromolithographs of the painting to promote the exhibit. So, in one sense, Marblehead is now taking Ryder's lead in selling reproductions of the famous painting.

The concept of creating fine-art reproductions of the treasured painting began when Nick and Susan Fader of Ditto Editions were asked to "digitally capture" the "Spirit of '76" for the town's recently revamped Web site. The high-quality results sparked attention in the town. The Faders decided to take the digital capture one step further, printing it out on canvas and framing it.

"We are very aware of copyright issues," said Susan Fader at a recent selectmen's meeting. "We weren't planning on mass-producing the image, but were curious as to how it would come out." Ditto Editions had already worked with the town of Hingham on a similar successful fund-raiser, and they knew the results would be even more favorable with the "Spirit of '76."

After viewing the oil-like quality of the giclée reproduction, Marblehead town officials knew they had a newfound treasure in their hands. It was just a question of what to do with it.

Shock leads to action
Ultimately, the Faders' concept was merged with Article 9 on the annual Town Meeting warrant. That article, sponsored by Selectman and Vietnam War veteran Harry Christensen and Veterans Agent David Rodgers, sought to erect a 7-1/2-foot statue in honor of those Marblehead residents who have lost their lives on 9-11 and since, without specifying the funding mechanism. In addition to bearing the names of Rimmele, Weems, Isbrandtsen and Piper, space will be left should further casualties occur.

The idea of commemorating the town's 9-11 victims was not new, but it had stalled until Piper's death, which brought the ongoing War on Terror home in a shocking way.

"Memorial Park is a sacred place in Marblehead where we honor members of our community who have given their lives for our country," Christensen explained at Town Meeting. "The War on Terror has already cost so many lives, including our most recent loss of Christopher Piper. We would like to be able to commemorate those lives and any others who may be lost due to the war."

Rodgers added, "It is with regret that we have to bring this to you, but we feel that this will be a good opportunity for the community to establish something in the honor of those who lost their lives."

Artistic integrity intact
While the concept might have been sound and the motives pure, there was still the matter of protecting the integrity of the original artwork.

"You can get a low-quality reproduction on the Internet, and believe me, they're bad," notes Susan Fader. "The colors aren't even in the original tones. The sellers are using terminology of giclée, even though the prints are not made in this process."

The town owns the copyright to the image, and the Board of Selectmen is frequently asked by textbook companies and others for the right to reproduce it. The board tends to look kindly on those whose aims are educational, often waiving the associated $100 fee, and not so favorably on purely commercial ventures.

Occasionally, board members have found themselves at odds over the painting's use. In 2001, the board originally split, 2-2 with one member absent, effectively denying permission to use the painting to Bob Jones University in Greenville, S.C., a politically and theologically conservative Christian fundamentalist school which, like many other southern colleges, until 1970 had barred non-white students and had only begun allowing interracial students to date in 2000. The school was also criticized for labeling Roman Catholicism a "cult." At a subsequent meeting, with the fifth board member present, the vote was 3-2 in favor of permitting Bob Jones to use the image and waiving the fee.

But in this case, both town officials and the arts community seem to agree that this is a noble effort.
Upon first hearing the idea, Hilary Emerson Lay, manager of the Spirit of '76 Bookstore in Marblehead and an artist, thought, "What a fantastic and amazingly creative fund-raising idea."
Joe Puleo, former president of the Marblehead Arts Association, shares Lay's enthusiasm.
"The painting is frequently copied off the Internet," he said. "Why not let the town profit from top-quality reproductions?"

Enduring inspiration
Ditto Editions will be producing a true giclée, an authorized fine-art reproduction of the original famous painting.

Although Town Administrator Anthony Sasso is still working through the legalities of reproducing the painting, the Faders' plan is to offer 100 copies each of two sizes, 15 inches by 20 inches and 18 inches by 24 inches, framed by Gene Arnould and the Arnould Gallery. The exact price has yet to be set, but according to Susan Fader, it will be more than a $25 item, more likely in the low- to mid-three-figure range.

Expecting the reproductions to be hot sellers, the town is expecting to raise more than enough to pay for the memorial. That led to the plan for the excess to go into an Art Restoration Account, which would be used for any sort of work needed on the "Spirit" or other art found in Abbot Hall, be it cleaning or the repair of frames, the type of work that generally cannot be funded in particularly lean municipal budget years.

If the project is as successful as it is projected to be, it will stand as one more testament that the inspiration embodied in the work continues to endure and translates from the Revolutionary War to the War on Terror. Even at its inception, the work was not accurate historical record, but rather symbolic.

"We know it's not the actual people from that time period," adds Peterson. "It's more of an inspirational piece."

Like the three soldiers in the painting, although one is injured, the message is to march onward.
What is giclée ?

The giclée process is the newest form of fine art reproduction. Digitally created, giclée surpasses other forms of reproduction in its accuracy, color and clarity. A digital capture is made directly from the original, without a film generation in between. But most importantly, it's archival and is affordably priced.

© 2006-07 Ditto Editions • All rights reserved
This web site designed by Valentine Design