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Artist Brings Reuther To Life
text & photos by Region 8 Webmaster John Davis

Zanesville, Ohio artist Alan Cottrill was chosen to create the seven foot bronze statue that is the centerpiece of the Reuther Memorial. Born in 1952, Alan Cottrill first made his fortunes in the restaurant business, building the successful pizza franchise Four Star Pizza into a huge success. In 1990 he first became enamored with clay and sold his business and devoted his time to becoming an artist.

Cottrill first studied at the Art Students League and the National Academy of Design in New York City. He first opened a studio in Washington, Pennsylvania but moved to a new 17,000 square foot facility in his hometown of Zanesville, Ohio in 2003. “When I first put my hands in clay in 1990, I knew she was the mistress I had traveled the world in search of,” Cottrill muses. “I was a teenager when Walter Reuther was killed and living in a very labor oriented area I remember hearing about it. When I received the commission I learned more about this great man and was determined to create a tribute that could tell his story.”

The seven foot bronze statue was first created in a clay model, with a mold being made from that. An armature for the substructure is made then placed inside the mold which allows the molten bronze to create the finished work.

Alan Cottrill studio can be found in Zanesville, Ohio and is typically open seven days a week.

Click Here to Visit the Alan Cottrill Website
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