Bronx County Courthouse
Joe created this sculptured group in limestone. It is on the Bronx County Courthouse, also known as the Mario Merola Building, in New York City. Joe’s note on the back of a photo by DeWitt Ward reads: ‘Bronx County Court House’ and ‘located on Walton Ave side of street Concourse Village’.
Another photo of the grouping is labeled “Justice” by Joe with this description: “Limestone panel 12’ x 18’ on the city and Municipal Court House Lafayette St. N.Y.C. William Laxx and Matthew Delxxx, architects.” The architects names are not legible. The building was constructed between 1931 and 1934.
Some descriptions credit Joe entirely for this work but a history of the Mario Merola Bronx County Building has this paragraph; “The tall rectangular block sculptures by Adolph A. Weinman are largely allegorical, paying homage to the history of government by law through the ages, beginning with Egypt, Greece, and Rome. They were created with the assistance of collaborators and sculpted by Weinman and his associates, Edward F. Sanford, George Snowden and Joseph Kiselewski.”
With further study we’ll discover Joe’s relationship with Weinman who was older than Joe and a renowned architectural sculptor.
The Risen Lord - Holy Cross Cemetary
“Uncle Joe designed this statue for St. Mary’s church which was later named Holy Cross Cemetary. This parish helped all of Fargo and other areas with their parish needs. The bishops of the Fargo area diocese are buried in front of this monument and the priests are buried around it,” said Barb Noland.
This is an eight foot bronze statue called The Risen Lord. It was designed in the 1940s. The Holy Cross Cemetery is at 1502 32nd Avenue North in Fargo, North Dakota.
Parkchester, Bronx
This is a photo of Barb when she visited Parkchester in the Bronx. The family sculpture above the door behind her, as well as the detail, were done by Joe Kiselewski. They are located at 1520 Archer Road in Bronx. The two women sitting on a bench is near the former Loew's American Theater.
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The apartment complex that includes the apartment behind Barb was built by Metropolitan Life Insurance Company from 1939 to 1942. The apartments, which included housing for 12,000 families, were called Parkchester. Now the entire neighborhood is called Parkchester and the apartments are condominiums.
Metropolitan Life displayed a model of the complex, which included bowling alleys, theaters, and shops, at the 1939 Worlds Fair in Queens. They commissioned Joe, and other artists, to create inspirational and entertaining art throughout the community. The projet was an affordable haven for soldiers, returning from WWII, and their families.
Photo by Katherine Marks of the New York Times
U.S. Army Medal of Good Conduct
Joe designed the US Army Good Conduct medal and it was approved by the Secretary of War on October 30, 1942.
On the obverse of the medal is an American eagle with its’ wings displayed and inverted. The eagle stands on a closed book and a Roman sword. Encircling this are the words Efficiency, Honor, Fidelity at the medal's outer edge. The reverse has a five-pointed star above a blank scroll suitable for engraving the recipient's name and above the star are the words, “For Good” and below the scroll “Conduct.” It is encircled by a wreath of laurel and oak leaves.
The same design was chosen for the US Air Force Good Conduct Medal when it was authorized by Congress on July 6, 1960, with the creation of the other medals of the Air Force.
The back of the plaster work.
World Peace
This medal by Joe, titled World Peace, was created in 1946 and is in the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. They describe it as follows.
“Research has not revealed the purpose of Joseph Kiselewski’s medal or the source of the commission. The obverse side shows a figure of peace, arms extended across the world. On the reverse, a dove holds an olive branh and rests upon a book, suggesting that the way to peace is through education. Kiselewski designed his medal in 1946, immediately after World War II, and it may be linked to the efforts of the United Nations, whose charter is to preserve world peace.”
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However, the Smithsonian got it wrong. World Peace was commissioned by the now defunct Society of Medalists. It was the thirty-third of the Society’s 129 mostly bronze medals issued from 1930 to 1995. The Society commissioned many well known sculptors throughout the years including Lee Lawrie, Joe’s long time friend, mentor, and employer.
The St. Anne Sculptures
Correspondence between Barb Noland and the archivist, Tom Ward, at the Diocese of Covington, KY led Tom to write an article about two pieces Joe made for the Diocese in 1949. The article can be read on page 8 of the Messenger of July 3rd, 2020.
Barb visiting Joe’s “Our Lady of Marydale” at the St. Anne Retreat Center in the Covington, Kentucky Catholic diocese in Kentucky during the summer of 2021. She’s holding a bust of Our Lady that Joe made as part of the project. Barb sent images of this bust to Tom Ward which Mr. Ward used to locate the entire statue, as described in his July 2020 Messenger article.
Bamberger's War Memorial
This is an image of a plaque designed by Joe and unveiled in December 1947 at the Newark New Jersey headquarters of the department store chain L. Bamberger & Company. The plaque reads: “1941 - 1945 Dedicated to the 1351 Co-workers of L. Bamberger & Co. who served in World War II and to the memory of the 18 who gave their lives for their country.”
Accompanying the plaque is a newspaper clipping from the Newark Star-Ledger of the plaque’s dedication. The child in the center is four year old Joanne Spitzer, whose father, 1st Sargent Joseph Spitzer, was killed in combat during the War. On the left is Arthur Manchee, the company’s General Manager, and, on the right, is John Williams, Company President.
The plaque was installed near the Bank Street entrance of the fourteen story tall building. Macy’s owned the Bamberger stores in the 1940s and by the 1980s all stores were named Macey’s. The Bamberger building with the plaque has been sold and repurposed as a data center. Barb Noland’s research suggests that the plaque is no longer there.
