Mountain Carving Gallery

The Mountain Carving Gallery in the Indian Museum of North America® tells the story of the triumphs and challenges of the world’s largest mountain sculpture. This display outlines this monumental project, from a Lakota Chief who fought to secure the land, to the sculptor he propositioned to take on this unprecedented endeavor and the tools and techniques he implemented, to the project’s key milestones and outlook for the future.

While searching for the appropriate person to bring his vision to life, Chief Henry Standing Bear became aware of Korczak’s stature as a sculptor through his work with Gutzon Borglum on the “Shrine of Democracy” sculpture at Mount Rushmore and his Carrara marble portrait, "Paderewski, Study of an Immortal", which won first prize at the New York World's Fair. Standing Bear solicited Korczak with a short letter, stating "My fellow chiefs and I would like the white man to know the red man has great heroes also". The two would correspond over the ensuing years, and Korczak finally accepted Standing Bear’s invitation after serving in World War II. With the War in the rear-view mirror, this enormous undertaking began in earnest in 1948.

In addition to providing the context and inspiration for this project, The Mountain Carving Gallery features the tools Korczak used in the early years of the Mountain, including a ½ size replica of “the bucket”, a wooden basket used with an aerial cable car run by an antique Chevy engine that allowed him to haul equipment and tools up the Mountain.

Korczak passed away in 1982, leaving his wive, Ruth Ziolkowski, and his children to continue with the Crazy Horse dream. His instructions were to first sculpt the horse’s head, but as Ruth took charge of the Memorial after his passing, she decided to shift the focus, from the 219-foot-tall Horse's Head to the 87 ½ foot tall face of Crazy Horse. This change in priorities, along with all of the twists and turns of the project, are detailed in the Mountain Carving Gallery through the instruments used to carve Crazy Horse’s face, plaster models of his face to project work, and the detailed pictorial progression of the face carving.