Roger Morigi

Master Carver Gargoyle (1960s), John Guarente, sculptor and carver, Washington National Cathedral. Note the horns and the mushroom cloud bursting out of the top of Morigi's head. Roger (Ruggiero) Morigi (4 October 1907 – 12 January 1995) was an Italian-born American stone carver and architectural sculptor. He made major contributions to Washington National Cathedral and other buildings in Washington, D.C. He was the teacher and mentor of sculptor Frederick Hart.

The National Cathedral's Master Carver Gargoyle, modeled and carved by John Guarente in the 1960s, is a caricature of Morigi.

Early career He was born in Bisuschio, Lombardy, the son of Napoleone and Josephine Ronchetti Morigi. He apprenticed under his stone carver father, beginning at age 11, and studied at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera in Milan. He emigrated to the United States in 1927, and worked with his father on projects in New Haven, Connecticut and elsewhere. He did interior work on the building,

Lege Atque Ordine Omnia Fiunt architrave (1935), C. Paul Jennewein, sculptor, Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building. Sculptor C. Paul Jennewein modeled The Four Elements, a set of Art Deco female nudes, for the fifth-floor lobby of what is now the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building. Morigi carved the allegorical figures in limestone, assisted by Bruno Mankowski and William Kapp.

The Last Supper Tympanum (1953–1959), Heinz Warneke, sculptor, Washington National Cathedral. Sculptor Heinz Warneke modeled the tympanum for the South Portal. It featured a tableau of The Last Supper and a three-panel frieze of The Road to Emmaus. Morigi (with Edward H. Ratti) carved the limestone tympanum in situ from scaffolding. Located inside the south transept, the memorial stone depicts Ratti carving a never-to-be-finished gargoyle.

Sculptor Walker Hancock modeled the altarpiece for the Good Shepherd Chapel in 1957, and Morigi carved it in limestone. Hancock would later model the central figure of Christ in Majesty for the High Altar, which Morigi carved in limestone (with Frank Zic).

In the 1950s and 1960s, Morigi carved the Saints of All Nations series, a set of half-life-sized limestone niche figures. Many of these were modeled by sculptor Marian Brackenridge, three by William McVey, two by Hancock, and the rest by a variety of sculptors. Each figure took Morigi about a month to carve. They were installed on ornate corbels above the pointed arches of the Nave's north and south side aisles.

Frederick Hart Adam (1974–1978), Frederick Hart, sculptor, West Portal, Washington National Cathedral.

After being rejected several times by Morigi, a 23-year-old Frederick Hart began an apprenticeship under him in 1967.

Hart's groundbreaking design for the central tympanum, Ex Nihilo ("out of nothing"), features nebulous human figures floating in a swirling mass. – for the pier between the cathedral's main doors. Adam was the last work Morigi completed prior to retirement—he quipped: "I finished where God began."

Personal Vincent Palumbo succeeded Morigi as the cathedral's master carver in 1978. Folklorist Marjorie Hunt spent years interviewing the carvers, and made them the subject of her PhD dissertation. Hunt adapted her work into a 1999 book. "The Master Carver Gargoyle" has become one of the cathedral's most popular sculptures.

Morigi quotes "A stone carver is inclined to be an honest man. An executive may embellish his résumé, but a stone carver's work is there for all to see. No matter how well he writes, it does not change the quality of the carving." "You don't teach anybody to carve. You give them the fundamentals of carving, like you take a hammer and a point and you hit, you take a chisel and cut. But the main thing in carving, you steal carving. ... ou have two or three carvers working in the same place, so you watch one, you watch the other; you steal a little bit from one, you steal a little bit from the other. Then you put it all together yourself. You develop your own technique."

Selected works

Washington, D.C. Federal Buildings Lachesis relief panel (1935), lampstand, U.S. Supreme Court Building. United States Supreme Court Building 2 lampstands (marble, 1935), carved by the John Donnelly Company. Part of the Courtroom's Great Lawmakers of History Frieze.

U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building Shepherd and His Flock

Department of the Post Office Building Transmission of the Mail by Day and by Night relief panels (limestone, 1932–1934), Adolph A. Weinman, sculptor, Anthony de Francisci, modeler, carved by the John Donnelly Company. Day, male figure flying beside an eagle Night, female figure flying beside an owl The Spirit of Progress and Civilization pediment (limestone, 1934), Adolph A. Weinman, sculptor, carved by the John Donnelly Company.

E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Courthouse Trylon of Freedom (1954), C. Paul Jennewein, sculptor, E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Courthouse. Trylon of Freedom (limestone, 1954), C. Paul Jennewein, sculptor, Morigi, carver, Vincent Tonelli, contractor. The three sides of the freestanding column represent the three branches of the federal government. The Four Freedoms: Religion, Speech, Assembly, Press (marble, year), four half-life-sized allegorical figures. The Road to Emmaus Frieze (limestone, 1953–1959), Heinz Warneke, sculptor, Morigi, carver (with Edward H. Ratti). The Nature of Christ Archivolt – "44 Angels" (limestone, 1966–1971), modeled & carved by Morigi (with Frank Zic). Saints of All Nations: Saint Andrew of Scotland (limestone, 1956), Wilson Bay, Marian Brackenridge, sculptor, Morigi, carver. John Calvin (limestone, 1956), Wilson Bay, Marian Brackenridge, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Saint Joan of Arc (limestone, 1957), Mellon Bay, Marian Brackenridge, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Saint Patrick of Ireland (limestone, 1959), Mellon Bay, Marian Brackenridge, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Saint Francis of Assisi (limestone, 1959), Humanitarian Bay, Marian Brackenridge, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Saint Stephen of Hungary (limestone, 1960), Carl L. Bush, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Saint Olaf of Norway (limestone, 1962), Humanitarian Bay, Stinius Fredriksen, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Saint Teresa of Avila (limestone, 1964), N.C.A. Bay, Joseph Coletti, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Ulrich Zwingli (limestone, 1965), Lee-Jackson Bay, Walker Hancock, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Isabella Thoburn (limestone, 1966), N.C.A. Bay, Marian Brackenridge, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Martin Luther (limestone, 1967), Lee-Jackson Bay, Walker Hancock, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Saint Margaret of Scotland (limestone, year), Churchill Porch, William McVey, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Saint Olga of Kiev (limestone, year), William McVey, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Soren Kierkegaard (limestone, 1977), Dulin Bay, William Conrad Severson, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Christ in Majesty (limestone, 1967–1972), over High Altar, Walker Hancock, sculptor, Morigi, carver (with Frank Zic). George Washington Tympanum (limestone, year), Washington Bay, Lee Lawrie, sculptor, Morigi, carver. Depicts Washington as a farmer and as a soldier. Adam (limestone, 1974–1978), trumeau figure, West Portal, Frederick Hart, sculptor, Morigi, carver. This was the last piece Roger Morigi carved for the National Cathedral. Frederick Hart's famous tympanum, Ex Nihilo (1978-84, carved by Vincent Palumbo), is directly above Adam.