Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Memorializing Audrey Munson
By
Jen Carlson
Published Dec 12, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Carlson
Published Dec 12, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Last year WNBC got up close and personal with the Civic Fame statue atop the Municipal Building, and this week The NY Times looks at the woman who modeled for that statue, and many others -- Audrey Munson, "a long-forgotten New York celebrity whose face and figure continue to grace the contours of statues all around Manhattan."
It was Ms. Munson’s eyes that stared stoically from the marble forms of the Firemen’s Memorial on Riverside Drive, Ms. Munson’s strong body that seemed ready to burst from the granite archway at the foot of the Manhattan Bridge. Altogether, Ms. Munson served as the inspiration for more than 15 statues around the city.
Munson began her career as a model at the age of 15, and later was in a number of films (including Inspiration, which featured the first female nude scene). Once her youth was in the past, she moved out of the city, and "America's Venus" was rarely heard from again, save for the 20 weeks worth of articles she wrote in 1921 for the American Weekly. Just 10 years later Munson was in St. Lawrence State Hospital for the Insane, where she was admitted on June 8th, 1931 and where she died in 1996 at the age of 105.
She was buried in an unmarked grave, something that Andrea Geyer (a New York-based, German-born artist) is trying to amend. Last year Geyer published a book about Ms. Munson, titled Queen of the Artists' Studio -- something she began after locking eyes with Civic Fame while working in the Woolworth Building. Art in General, along with Geyer, are raising money for a monument for the gravesite, which is located in upstate New York. More info on how to donate, here. The two have also joined forces to create a New York map highlighting all of the locations of Ms. Munson's statues.
Photo of "Memory" in Straus Park, 107th and Broadway via Joe Schumacher.
Tagged
america
andreageyer
art
audreymunson
broadway
celebrity
Civic Fame
history
hospital
joe schumacher
lawrence
manhattan
manhattan bridge
money
Municipal Building
new york
news
nude
ny times
nyc
once
queen
Riverside Drive
sculpture
Straus Park
the city
The NY
the ny times
this week
Weekly
wnbc
woolworth building
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
NJ reports first West Nile Virus death of the year
While the national West Nile Virus trend has slowed down, activity in the Garden State has picked up.
By
Michael Sol Warren
Published Oct 4, 2026 at 11:03 a.m. ET
NY's prison system is in crisis. It's driving staff away from the job.
The state is currently struggling with a 56% vacancy rate among prison workers.
By
Emily Russell
News
NY's prison system is in crisis. It's driving staff away from the job.
The state is currently struggling with a 56% vacancy rate among prison workers.
By
Emily Russell
NYPD searching for suspect after fatal stabbing in Queens
By
Ben Feuerherd
NYPD: 2 suspects in off-duty officer stabbing tried to rob victim
By
Jill Webb
Astoria-born Chip City announces sudden closure days after former CEO sues
By
Catalina Gonella
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .