Gage Prentiss - 23 Who Made a Difference in RI in 2023

Gage Prentiss - 23 Who Made a Difference in RI in 2023

One of the highlights of 2023 was the unveiling of the remarkable Edward Bannister sculpture created by Gage Prentiss.

The sculpture was a brilliant tribute to the artists who helped to shape Rhode Island. Bannister was born nearly 200 years ago.

Bannister created a sensation when one of his paintings won first prize at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition in 1876. He was also a respected and knowledgeable art critic.

GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST

Bannister was a founding member of the Providence Art Club and the Rhode Island School of Design.

And it was Prentiss who brought Bannister to life in 2023. The City of Providence declared September 10 "Edward Mitchell Bannister Day."

Prentiss is a sculptor and painter living and working in Rhode Island. He graduated with a BFA in Sculpture from Boston University in 1999, and “has been exploring the feelings of place, presence and wonder through his art ever since," wrote the Providence Art Club.

“When he began as an artist, he was driven to make tangible objects from things experienced in dreams, to make the presence in his headstand in the room. Gage worked figuratively using the rich language of human gesture, nuance, balance and context to say a lot with very little. These figures usually broke down or transformed in different ways to capture a revolving sense of beauty and repulsiveness in the protean dualities of dream logic.”