THE HORSE SOLDIERS: THE STORY BEHIND THE STATUE

“Free the Oppressed,” a sculpture by Douwe Blumberg to honor U.S. special operations, unveiled on Veterans Day in New York. Most of the work on the bronze monument was done at a Norman foundry in central Oklahoma.



Sean,

I live in Norman, OK where this statue was created. I have attached three pics and a newspaper article that better explains the statue. Hope you find this informative. Read your blog daily . . . keep it up!

Respectfully,
Member, Team STORMBRINGER





From the Daily Oklahoman story by Bryan Painter

The 13-foot-tall sculpture was inspired by a photo taken in 2001 of U.S. special operation teams on horseback in northern Afghanistan. An anonymous group of individuals, including those who lost friends in the 9/11 attacks, commissioned the work, Blumberg said.

The unveiling of the monument, “De Oppresso Liber,” or “Free the Oppressed,” is scheduled for Friday morning.
The statue was created to commemorate the role of U.S. special operations teams in the early stages of Operation Enduring Freedom in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

While Blumberg resides in De Mossville, Ky., much of the work on the bronze monument was done in Norman at The Crucible Foundry, a full-service foundry specializing in monumental bronze, and Synappsys Digital Services, a full-service sculpture enlargement and reduction company.

“When I saw that picture I was like, ‘This is crazy, this irony of this 21st-century soldier on this 16th-century Afghan Mountain Horse,'” Blumberg said recently while in Norman. “I was like, ‘What the heck?'”

“Here's this technologically advanced Western culture working symbiotically with this ancient culture, coming together for a common goal. They needed to go in under the radar and navigate rough terrain. This was the way to do it.”

Emotional work

For Blumberg, this particular work flips the cliché “What's wrong with this picture?” To this former horse trainer and military history buff, everything was right with this photo.

Born in Los Angeles, he spent some formative years in Europe being exposed to Western artistic traditions. Blumberg went on to attend the University of Southern California's Idyllwild School of Music and the Arts. He continued to study sculpture and metal works. But when he completed his education, instead of going into the arts he became a horse trainer. After several years he shifted back to the arts.

He has completed more than 200 private and public commissions and has received numerous awards. Blumberg's passions past and present meet in this work dedicated to the service of all U.S. Special Operations Forces.

Read it in it's entirety HERE.



Month of Honor continues at STORMBRINGER


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