Mount Rushmore: The Story Behind America’s Shrine of Democracy

Greetings from Mount Rushmore! I’d never been, but I had the chance to do what I’ve also never done — an intensive Mountain State road trip — and took it. What a beautiful, blessed country we have, and how grateful I feel to scribble about the Rushmore sculptures on July Fourth. The suite of stone heads, after all, is officially called The Shrine of Democracy.

Rushmore, which I thought might be kitsch, is magnificent. That’s a result of the artist’s vision, nature’s prudence, persistence, of course, and running out of money. Is it, though, a great work of art? Yes, I know, good things come in small packages, but given its craftsmanship, pliancy of meaning, originality, spartan look, and depth, I’d say it is. At 60 feet each, the heads are taller than the Sphinx. When deemed finished in 1941, the collective colossus was the biggest sculpture anywhere in the world.

About the Author

Brian T. Allen

Brian T. Allen is National Review’s art critic.

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Greetings from Mount Rushmore! I’d never been, but I had the chance to do what I’ve also never done — an intensive Mountain State road trip — and took it. What a beautiful, blessed country we have, and how grateful I feel to scribble about the Rushmore sculptures on July Fourth. The suite of stone heads, after all, is officially called The Shrine of Democracy.

Rushmore, which I thought might be kitsch, is magnificent. That’s a result of the artist’s vision, nature’s prudence, persistence, of course, and running out of money. Is it, though, a great work of art? Yes, I know, good things come in small packages, but given its craftsmanship, pliancy of meaning, originality, spartan look, and depth, I’d say it is. At 60 feet each, the heads are taller than the Sphinx. When deemed finished in 1941, the collective colossus was the biggest sculpture anywhere in the world.