The Joseph M. Bryan Foundation commissioned Barnhill to create the 11-foot bronze statue of General Nathanael Greene — “The Fighting Quaker” — that graces the Greene Street roundabout in downtown Greensboro. The job wasn't easy. How does one capture the essence of a man who was a walking contradiction, and something of saint?
“As far as I could tell, he was all virtue and no vice,” says Barnhill, who read up on Greene, Washington's right-hand man during the Revolutionary War and commander of the Southern army. “He was everything you would think a hero figure should be, and he was every bit the man Washington was.”
Barnhill also created the Minerva statue that stands outside Elliott University Center. He now teaches art at NC A&T.
The City of Greensboro unveiled Greene March 26, following a year's worth of work on Barnhill's part, and a few setbacks. The first form collapsed under the weight of the clay, causing Barnhill to start from scratch.
But, Barnhill says, the effort was worth it.
“It was a great honor to be chosen to do this. I feel like they were real real pleased with the results. And I was pleased; that was the main thing.”
By Michelle Hines, University Relations
Photography by Chris English, University Relations
