Thereafter, and until his death in 1959, he reverted to his default style, a sort of outdated romantic expressionism that had nothing to do with mainstream modernism. My line was that all his innovative sculptures were done just before and during the First World War, such as Rock Drill and the tomb of Oscar Wilde.His bronze full-length of Jan Christian Smuts in Parliament Square (nicknamed The Skater) utterly lacks the one thing a public monument must have – dignity.The monstrous bronze family group that used to stand at Bowater House in Knightsbridge, meanwhile, is so stridently over-emphatic I used to wince every time I passed it.

They have talked financial restraint and the big picture, but the quest to win now led them to invest 2 million to retain Rich Hill, Kenley Jansen and Justin Turner.

But looking back, I accept it was unfair to dismiss his work as a whole.

For sheer brute force, there is nothing in British art like his monumental carving in alabaster Jacob and the Angel.

Park Ridge, Illinois Welcome to WBBM Newsradio 780 & 105.9FM, The Home of Chicago Bears Radio, on CBSChicago.com!

WBBM Newsradio 780 & 105.9FM is joining forces with the CBS 2 Television and 670 The Score […]Have you ever wanted to attend a live-taping of The Talk? The Anchors Away Sweepstakes will give five lucky fans the chance to fly to LA and snag a pair of VIP tickets.