Shaping Arizona Statehood:
The George Stuart Historical Figures
of the Movement West
A Guide to the Exhibit for Educators
The exhibit Shaping Arizona Statehood: The George Stuart Historical Figures of the
Movement West includes fourteen figures from George S. Stuart’s Movement
West group that represent more than 400 years of New World discovery and
exploration that carved the path to Arizona Statehood in 1912.
Through the exhibit students will have the opportunity to seemingly meet
characters from history while learning how the actions of these people affected
the world and shaped the future. Arizona state education standards addressed
include social studies standards for US and World History content as well as
mathematics and art education standards.
To arrange a visit to The Mini Time Machine Museum contact Education
Director, Lisa Hastreiter-Lamb, [email protected], or 520- 8810606, ext 105. You may arrange a self-guided tour for anytime, but please allow
three weeks advance notice for a docent-led tour.
Exhibition Overview
George S. Stuart creates one-quarter-life-size historic figures of
individuals who were the driving force that shaped history throughout the
world. Exquisitely crafted with fine detail, Mr. Stuart’s figures are an honest (though not always pleasant)
portrayal of history. The exhibit includes portraits of 15th century Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella,
reminding viewers that the path to Arizona statehood was rooted in Spain’s desire to expand their power and
religious beliefs beyond Europe. Columbus, Pope Alexander VI, Cortés and Malinche, Moctezuma and an
Aztec Leopard (Jaguar) Warrior, as well as Father Eusebio Kino define the European
conquest of the New World from Mexico into present day Arizona. Jedediah Smith, Kit
Carson, Abraham Lincoln, and Arizona’s fifth Territorial Governor John Frémont and his
wife Jesse Benton Frémont, take us through the 18th century and the development of
Arizona as a Territory, which it was for nearly 49 years before becoming the 48th and last
of the contiguous states to enter the Union in 1912.
Mr. Stuart’s talent is unsurpassed in rendering life-like miniature historic portraits. He
didn’t rely on skill alone to create his works of art, but carefully researched the physical
and narrative history of each individual he chose to portray; therefore his Historical
Figures are as unique as the counterparts they depict. The highly detailed figures capture
the personal side of these very public personalities. There is a magic to these miniatures
because they are amazingly accurate and authentic. An encounter with the figures feels
like a meeting with individuals whom you’ve only read about in history books.
Queen Isabella I of Castile
King Ferdinand II of Aragon
Queen Isabella holds
her rosary signifying
her deeply rooted
Catholic faith. King
Ferdinand stands
erect with his sword
symbolizing the bloody
battles of the Spanish
Inquisition.
Moctezuma II v. 2
Aztec Leopard Warrior II v. 2
The best Aztec warriors became jaguar
(leopard) or eagle warriors. The jaguar
warriors wore unique helmets and a jaguar
skin body suit. Through the use of military
force, Moctezuma II expanded the Aztec
Empire to its maximum size; yet Moctezuma
II is remembered as a leader of a defeated
nation who succumbed to Hérnan Cortés
and the Spanish conquistadors.
1492 Spanish Monarchs finance Columbus’ expedition
1496 Treaty of Tordesillas
Columbus’ efforts to establish permanent settlements in
Hispaniola initiate Spanish colonization and launch European
exploration and colonization of the “New World”.
Christopher Columbus
Pope Alexander VI
Father Eusubio Francisco Kino S.J.
1682 Father Kino departs Castile (Spain) to found missions
in present-day Northern Mexico and Arizona
1519 Cortés enters Mexico and the continent
At the request of the Spanish Monarchy, Pope Alexander
VI authors the Treaty of Tordesillas dividing trading and
colonizing rights for all newly discovered lands between Spain
and Portugal to the exclusion of other European nations.
Hérnan Cortés
From Colonist of Hispaniola,
to the leader of the
expedition that caused the
fall of the Aztec empire,
Cortés led the first phase
of the Spanish colonization
of the Americas. He died a
wealthy but bitter man.
Jessie Frémont
holds her journal in
which she wrote her
husband’s memoirs.
The publication saved
the Frémont family
from financial ruin.
Jedediah Smith is credited as the first American to travel
overland to California. He crossed the Colorado River, went
into Arizona, and then travelled south along the mountains
until reaching a Mojave Indian village near Needles, CA.
John C. Frémont, Governor of
Arizona Territory
Jedediah Smith
1692 Father Kino founds Mission San Xavier del Bac near present-day Tucson
1502—1520 Reign of Moctezuma II in Tenochtitlan
1492—1503 During the papacy of Pope Alexander VI Columbus makes four
voyages all under the crown of Castile (Spain)
Father Kino drew the first accurate maps of the Pimeria
Alta (Northern Mexico and Southern Arizona), the Gulf of
California and Baja California. He stands holding an astrolabe*.
1823 Jedediah Smith traversed Arizona
La Malinche
John C. Frémont believed strongly in Manifest
Destiny and actively supported Westward
expansion. As Governor he promoted economic
development and created Cochise, Gila, and
Graham Counties.
1878—1881 John C. Frémont is Territorial Governor of Arizona
1842—1846 Kit Carson guides John C. Frémont
La Malinche was an interpreter,
counselor and lover for
Hérnan Cortés. She gave birth
to Cortés’ first son who is
considered the first Mestizo. She
was invaluable to the Spanish,
but is considered a traitor by
her people, the Aztecs.
Jessie Benton Frémont
Kit Carson
1863 President Lincoln establishes the Arizona Territory, Kit
Carson expels 8,000 Navajos from Northern Arizona
Kit Carson achieved national
fame through Frémont’s report
on their expedition published by
Congress. Under orders from the
US Army, and with a heavy heart,
Carson drove the Navajo from
their lands by destroying their
means of substinence, using a
“Scorched Earth Policy”.
Abraham Lincoln
In the same year
in which Lincoln
delivered the
Gettysburg Address,
he also established
the Arizona Territory
and appointed its first
territorial governor.
1912
Arizona
Statehood
Established
*astrolabe: a compact
instrument used to
observe and calculate
the position of celestial
bodies before the
invention of the sextant
Who is George S. Stuart?
Artist, historian, and raconteur- these are
descriptions that aptly suit Mr. George Stuart, who
practiced all three disciplines for more than fifty years. Mr.
Stuart’s Historical Figures came about because of his desire
to create life-like sculptures of individual personalities. His
fascination with history further encouraged him to create
sculptures of historic people that were accurate and
authentic. He decided to use as many resources as he
could find including death masks, autopsy reports, even
Madame Tussaud’s wax figures, to learn specific details
about each person he would model in mixed media. His
goal was to produce true-to-life likenesses.
Mr. Stuart needed a way to support himself and his passion for modeling figures. A friend suggested
that he go on the performance circuit with his artwork telling stories about the lives of the people he was
sculpting. This way he would have a job. He decided to give it a try and signed up for voice lessons, found an
agent, and got his career off the ground. This pursuit resulted in a twenty-eight year career for Mr. Stuart who
travelled throughout the Midwest and Western states performing as a raconteur until 1976. All in all he wrote
and presented eighty monologues and created between eight and twelve figures for each performance for a
total of more than four hundred Historical Figures.
When he left the touring circuit in 1976, Mr. Stuart settled down in Ojai, CA. At that time the Museum
of Ventura County acquired approximately 200 of his Figures, which was most of his inventory. Though he
was no longer travelling with the Figures, Mr. Stuart began receiving commissions from private collectors and
continued to create new Figures both for commission, and to add to existing groups of Figures. In 2006, The
Historic Figures Foundation, a non-profit corporation was established to assure that the Historical Figures and
monologues are preserved and made available for the education of future generations.
In his eighties, Mr. Stuart tends to be a perfectionist and has not slowed down. He continues
reworking many of his early Figures using new materials, skills and techniques learned through experience to
obtain true-to-life results. Not only does he continue to create these wonderful works of art, since 1976 Mr.
Stuart regularly presents monologues at the Ventura County Museum. Currently many of his monologues are
being videotaped for eventual production as documentaries.
Influences and Inspiration
Looking back on his youth Mr. Stuart remembers a couple of childhood
experiences that foreshadowed the future. The Christmas of 1937 is one such
experience; that Christmas he received a special gift from his parents, a Czechoslovakian
puppet. The young George Stuart was fascinated with its human form and movement and
the puppet remained a prized possession throughout his childhood.
Stuart created this replica
(to the best of his memory)
of the Czechoslovakian
puppet he had as a child.
George Stuart struggled with his studies because he had dyslexia. In the 1930s
doctors hadn’t identified dyslexia and didn’t have methods for overcoming the disability,
therefore school was difficult for Stuart. Though he struggled his parents were patient
with him. They hoped their son would pursue a career in public service for the State
Department. George Stuart wasn’t interested in public service. He was interested in
architecture and art. On a family trip to Europe he was awed by the Palace of Versailles.
Though only nine years old, he decided to build a 1/2” scale model of the castle. The
miniature was quite a magnificent effort by such a young man. He created it out of
concrete, marble and mahogany with the help of Dr. Irma Kasten, a friend of his
grandmother who supported and encouraged his creativity.
Mr. Stuart’s first Historical Figure was created in 1951. Having developed a love of
history and inspired by an impression of Louis XVI imprinted on his mind since his childhood visit to Versailles,
he created a mixed media full-body three-dimensional portrait of the king in about one day. He had no
intention of making a group of figures this fateful day, he just had the materials and decided to “give it a go”.
When the figure was complete he decided that it needed a companion. Marie Antoinette was the logical
person to portray. Pleased with the results of his first two figures but desiring a more realistic representation,
Mr. Stuart decided to sculpt another portrait and then another. As time passed he continued to create figures
and refine his technique through trial and error, employing the help of artisans skilled in a variety of crafts
from embroidery to metal casting. With practice and the help of others his work improved, and he began
reworking figures he had produced at an earlier time to upgrade the quality of their presentation.
Left and detail above: Mr. Stuart’s first attempts to create
Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.
Louis XVI by Antoine-François Callet,
Located in The Palace of Versailles.
How are the Figures Constructed?
Mr. Stuart’s Historical Figures are assembled sculptures created from mixed media. The figures are designed
to be flexible and their garments are fully functional.
Research
Mr. Stuart selects a subject for a Historical Figure then he carefully studies the personality, contemporary
texts, paintings, drawings, anatomy references, even autopsy reports to learn as much as possible about the
person and the time in which they lived.
Planning
Once he has reach an understanding of the person and the time period, Stuart sketches out a design to
determine how to best represent the Figure - clothing, position and demeanor. Accessories such as jewels and
weapons are selected and designed.
Skeleton
Modeling begins with an articulated skeleton of iron wire sized to the best available anatomical data. The
figures are one-quarter-life-size. Individual heights can vary- from Queen Victoria who was less than five feet
tall to Abe Lincoln at nearly six and a half feet, thus the figures range between fifteen and twenty inches tall.
The wire skeleton is articulated so that the limbs move.
Bones and Muscle
The wire skeleton is carefully wrapped in clay tape to form bones. Cotton is added and modeled to form the
muscles and body shape.
Skin
Next Mr. Stuart creates the "skin". Using pattern pieces the body is cut from felt and sewn. The Figure is
covered by this “skin” and muscles are articulated with a needle and thread.
Hands
The hands are carefully sized and shaped in wire, often to hold objects or to portray a gesture. The final hands
and feet are then sculpted in modeling material.
Head
A preformed plastic skull is shaped to the anatomy of the Figure. Then clay is modeled in several steps that
results in the likeness of the Figure.
Hair and Scalp
The hair and a scalp of Icelandic sheepskin are carefully modeled and applied to the head. The hair is colored
and modeled to the Figure's likeness.
Assembly and Make Up
The body parts are assembled; the head and hands are carefully painted and colored.
Clothing and Accessories
Undergarments are added in accordance with the times. Finally outer garments, shoes, jewelry, weapons,
accessories, etc. are set. The Figure is attached to a base.
Vocabulary
accurate
centennial
historian
monologue
state
armature
commission
inspiration
paper mâché
territory
articulated
contiguous
Manifest Destiny
Pimeria Alta
artist
death mask
mestizo
portrait
artisan
governor
miniature
raconteur
authenticity
Hispaniola
model
sculpture
Suggestions for Discussing and Interpreting the Exhibit
Grades K-2
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Read and discuss books about the exploration of the Americas and life in the Arizona Territory. For
suggestion see the Bibliography.
Print out the Shaping Arizona Timeline handout on 11”x17”. (If possible laminate the timeline.) Cut out
the Historical Portraits. Use a map of the world and discuss where each of the characters lived. Tape
the Historical Portraits to their homeland on the map. Next review the events on the timeline and
together with your students, move the pictures of the Historical Portraits from the map onto the
timeline in the correct order.
Discuss the dress, language and customs of Montezuma, Malinche, and the Aztec Leopard Warrior as
compared to King Ferdinand, Columbus, and Cortés to explain how life in the Americas was new to
the European explorers.
Grades 3-5 (Activities with an asterisk* can be adjusted for middle school and high school students)
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* Use images of the Historical Figures included to discuss the lifestyle in Europe as compared to the
Aztec’s lifestyle during the late 15th and early 16th century. Discuss the similarities and differences in
dress, social status, customs, and religious beliefs.
* Discuss the relationship of Cortés and Malinche and/or Cortés and Montezuma as a means of
discussing the impact of the European explorers’ encounters with the Aztecs.
* Mr. Stuart includes particular accessories with each Historical Figure to represent what was
important or significant in each of their lives. These objects are symbolic of who they are. For example,
Queen Isabella holds a rosary in her hand signifying her deep Catholic faith, and Father Eusebio Kino
holds an astrolabe indicating that he drew the first accurate maps of the Pimeria Alta, the Gulf of
California and Baja California. Define and discuss symbols with your students. Make a list of different
symbols. Discuss how symbols are used to indicate a person’s character. What would it mean if the
artist put a beautiful flower next to someone? What would you put in the picture to show someone’s a
hard working person? Have students create a picture of someone who is good/bad/free/captive/happy/
sad etc. using symbols to indicate their character.
* Each of Mr. Stuart’s figures represents a specific individual from the past. Ask your students to
research a person from Arizona’s history for the purpose of creating a portrait of the person. They
could draw, paint or sculpt their portrait.* Students’ research should include as much as information
about the person’s life and experience as possible. Students may use photographs, paintings and
sculpture as references when creating their portraits.
•
Mr. Stuart’s Historical Figures are created one-quarter-life-size. Abraham Lincoln was six and a half feet
tall. Ask your students to figure out how tall the Historical Figure of Lincoln is. [Determine the total
inches for 6 ½ feet: (12 x 6) +6=78, divide 78 by 4 = 19.5inches.] The figure of Father Kino is 16.5
inches tall. Can the students figure out how tall Father Kino was in real life? Image that Mr. Stuart will
create a one-quarter-life-size figure of each student; have the student’s determine their height in onequarter-life-size scale.
*Check out: http://www.cartooncritters.com/drawhumanhead1.htm
for a tutorial on how to create the correct proportions and parts of the human face.
Bibliography
Books
Grades Pre-K-2
Maestro, Betsy, Exploration and Conquest: The Americas After Columbus: 1500-1620 (The American Story),
HarperCollins, 1997.
Taylor-Butler, Christine, Explorers of North America (True Books: American History), Children’s Press, 2008
Wade, Mary Dodson, Christopher Columbus (Rookie Bibliographies), Scholastic Books, 2003.
Grades 3-5
Levy, Buddy, Conquistador: Hérnan Cortes, King Montezuma, and the Last Stand of the Aztecs, Bantam (July
28, 2009)
Markle, Sandra, Animals Christopher Columbus Saw: An Adventure in the New World, Scholastic Books,
MacDonald, Fiona, You Wouldn't Want to Sail With Christopher Columbus!: Uncharted Waters You'd Rather
Not Cross, Scholastic Books, 2004.
Nelson-Hernandez, Natalie, Mapmakers of the western trails: Adventures with John Charles Fremont, Santa
Ynez Publications (April 1997)
Sanford, William. John C. Fremont: Soldier and Pathfinder (Legendary Heroes of the Wild West) Enslow
Publishers, 1996
Grades 4-9
Aronson, Marc, The World Made New: Why the Age of Exploration Happened and How It Changed the
World (Timelines of American History), National Geographic Children's Books, 2007.
Basler, Roy P., Abraham Lincoln: Great Speeches (Dover Thrift Editions), Dover Publications; Unabridged
edition, 1991.
Jeffery, SB, The Age of Exploration: From Henry the Navigator to Columbus, Webster's Digital Services, 2011.
Meyer, Carolyn, The Royal Diaries: Isabel: Jewel of Castilla, Spain, 1466, Scholastic Books, 2000.
Thomas, Hugh, Conquest: Cortes, Montezuma, and the Fall of Old Mexico, Simon & Schuster, 1995.
Truett, John A., To Die in Dinetah: The Dark Legacy of Kit Carson, Sunstone Press, 1994.
Von Burg, Frederick, Keep My White Sneakers, Kit Carson: An Adventure with the Blackfeet, iUniverse, 2002.
Web Sources
Information about the People presented in Shaping Arizona Statehood
(Information about the personalities in the exhibit are also hyperlinked on the timeline of this education
guide.)
Queen Isabella: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isabella_I_of_Castile
King Ferdinand: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Ferdinand_of_Spain
Christopher Columbus: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cristóbal_Colón
Pope Alexander the VI: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Alexander_VI
Hérnan Cortés: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hernán_Cortés
La Malinche: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/malinche
Moctezuma: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moctezuma_II
Aztec Leopard (Jaguar) Warrior: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aztec_warfare
Father Eusebio Kino: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_Eusebio_Kino
Jedediah Smith: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jedediah_Smith
Kit Carson: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kit_Carson
Abraham Lincoln: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln
John Fremont: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_C._Frémont
Jesse Benton Frémont: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jessie_Fremont
Information about Mr. George Stuart and the Historical Figures Foundation
http://www.galleryhistoricalfigures.com/index.html
Information concerning Westward Expansion and Arizona Statehood
What is the Crown of Castile?: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crown_of_Castile
What was the Treaty of Tordesillas?: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Tordesillas
Aztec Empire: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aztec_Empire
What is a Mestizo?: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mestizo
Mission San Xavier del Bac: http://www.sanxaviermission.org/History.html
What is Manifest Destiny?: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manifest_Destiny
An outline of westward expansion: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westward_expansion
Where is the Pimeria Alta?: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pimeria_Alta
What was the Long walk of the Navajo?: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Walk_of_the_Navajo
Gettysburg Address: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gettysburg_Address
History of Arizona: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Arizona