William Ludwig

Art Brokerage: William Ludwig American Artist: b. 1935-2011. William Ludwig “Bill” was a med student, in his early years. One anatomy project turned his head to sculpture and he never looked back. His pieces are each one of a kind, there are no editions. Uniqueness in bronze is almost unheard of because of the expense and complexity of the bronze casting process. Bill was able to produce such rarities because he had his own foundry. His work is nearly all figurative with a surrealist overtone that leads viewers to build their own various stories around each piece. Bill Ludwig graduated cum laude from Hartford Art School, where his major influences were Wolfgang Behl, Rudolph Zallinger, Clifford Jones and Paul Zimmerman. He received an MFA in sculpture from Tulane University where he studied under Jules Struppeck and Jessie Poesch. In 1968 he began a cooperative foundry with another sculptor and had his first one-man show at a professional gallery. Bill Ludwig designed and built his own art casting foundry/studio in the New Orleans area starting in 1972. He participated in many juried and invitational shows, 29-one-man shows and 26 two-person shows and has served as visiting artist at colleges and universities in Louisiana, Florida, Georgia and North Carolina. He has also served on the faculties at Loyola University and Tulane University in New Orleans. Bill Ludwig created and cast the Louisiana Vietnam Veterans' Memorial at the Superdome, the portrait of Malcolm Woldenberg and his grandson for Woldenberg Park near the Aquarium, and the statue of fictional character Ignatius Reilly from The Confederacy of Dunces for the Chateau Sonesta Hotel on Canal Street. He also sculpted a life-sized bronze Crucified Christ and the Virgin Mary as a young girl for St. Luke the Evangelist Church in Slidell. Other public sculptures include two citrus workers for Leu Gardens in Orlando, FL and an older man and young boy seated in conversation for Presbyterian Homes in Lake Forest, IL. Bill Ludwig, died November 20, 2011, at Hospice House in Hammond, LA. He was 76 years old. Listings wanted by Art Brokerage.