• Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to secondary sidebar

New York Almanack

History, Natural History & the Arts

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • Adirondacks & NNY
  • Capital-Saratoga
  • Mohawk Valley
  • Hudson Valley & Catskills
  • NYC & Long Island
  • Western NY
  • History
  • Nature & Environment
  • Arts & Culture
  • Outdoor Recreation
  • Food & Farms
  • Subscribe
  • Support
  • Submit
  • About
  • New Books
  • Events
  • Podcasts

Utica’s Henry DiSpirito: Stonemason to Sculptor

June 7, 2021 by Editorial Staff 2 Comments

Henry DiSpiritoHenry DiSpirito (1898-1995) was an Italian immigrant who came to Utica, NY, in 1921 from Castleforte, Italy. He settled into the heavily immigrant populated neighborhood of East Utica and found work as a stonemason/bricklayer; a trade he learned from his father. Through his work on a Works Progress Administration (WPA) art project creating dioramas and subsequent study at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Art Institute, he found his calling in direct carving in stone.

The Rome Historical Society will host “Henry DiSpirito: Stonemason to Sculptor,” a virtual program looking at the life, art, and experiences of DiSpirito in Utica, NY, set for Wednesday, June 16th at 7 pm. This talk will be led by Ashley Hopkins-Benton, and will focus on DiSpirito’s immigrant experience, and its impact on his art.

Ashley Hopkins-Benton holds an MA in History Museum Studies from SUNY’s Cooperstown Graduate Program and a BA in Studio Art and Art Education from SUNY Potsdam. She is now Senior Historian and Curator at the New York State Museum and has done extensive research on Henry DiSpirito’s life and legacy.

This program can be viewed live on the Rome Historical Society’s Facebook page. For more information, call (315) 336-5870 or visit their website.

Portrait of Henry DiSpirito.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Filed Under: Arts, Events, History, Western NY Tagged With: Rome Historical Society

About Editorial Staff

Stories written under the Editorial Staff byline are drawn from press releases and other notices. Submit your news to New York Almanack here.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Sharon says

    January 31, 2023 at 12:48 PM

    What was the date of the Henry Dispirito presentation?

    Reply
    • Editorial Staff says

      January 31, 2023 at 3:36 PM

      Wednesday, June 16, 2021

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Help Support The Almanack

Subscribe to New York Almanack

Subscribe! Follow the New York Almanack each day via E-mail, RSS, Twitter or Facebook updates.

Recent Comments

  • James S. Kaplan on New York State Canals Bicentennial: Some History & Plans For Celebrations
  • M Raff on Deep Time: Lake Ontario’s Lucky Stones & Fossils
  • N. Couture on Iroquois and the Invention of the Empire State
  • Bob on Are Baby Boomers The Worst Generation?
  • Anonymous on Gymnastics History: The Legacy of Friedrich Ludwig Jahn’s Turnerism
  • Editorial Staff on Women at Seneca Knitting Mill in Seneca Falls
  • B cottingham-kleckner on Women at Seneca Knitting Mill in Seneca Falls
  • Landscaping By G. Pellegrino on Work Begins On Bayard Cutting Arboretum Visitors Center
  • Colette on Cornwall-on-Hudson Historian Colette Fulton Being Honored
  • Daniel RAPP on Former NY Central Adirondack Division Rails Being Removed

Recent New York Books

“The Amazing Iroquois” and the Invention of the Empire State
american inheritance
Norman Rockwell's Models
The 1947 Utica Blue Sox Book Cover
vanishing point
From the Battlefield to the Stage
field of corpses
Madison's Militia
in the adirondacks

Secondary Sidebar

Mohawk Valley Trading Company Honey, Honey Comb, Buckwheat Honey, Beeswax Candles, Maple Syrup, Maple Sugar
preservation league