St. Patrick
By Elijah Nugent & Jack Kreutzer, Installed 2025
“Our intention for this sculpture was to capture a man as he might have been. St Patrick was born in the 4th century and most writings about him are as much legend as fact. What we do know is that as a young man St. Patrick was a self described atheist, captured in England at 16 and brought to Ireland as a slave for 6 years. It was this time as a slave shepherd that brought him to faith and gave him his mission. In his own book ‘Confessio’ he writes of his escaped captivity and why he was drawn back to Ireland to speak against slavery. He did this as a Bishop, largely through incorporating the local pagan beliefs into his own teachings and through great feats of engineering; building schools, churches, and bridges. He was never canonized by any church and therefore not a figure of prayer. These facts led us to create a figure as how he may have been, not an object of worship, but a man addressing the people, driven by his faith with a message of equality.”
The St. Patrick sculpture is a collaboration between artists Elijah Nugent and his mentor Jack Kreutzer. It was originally commissioned for Marian University in Indianapolis by their patron Bill Witchger. This is Jack’s fourth permanent installation in Benson Sculpture Garden and Elijah’s first.
