The bronze sculpture of Hobo Day icon Weary Wil and his faithful dog have stood vigil outside the Hobo Day Gallery by the University Student Union since their unveiling Nov. 4, 2011. Dirty Lil will join them on the eve of Hobo Day 2013 with a 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 4, unveiling.
A clay enlargement of Dirty Lil was created in the studio of sculptor David Anderson. From there more than 20 molds were poured, eventually cast in bronze and assembled at a foundry in Colorado to form the final sculpture. The casting was to be completed Sept. 4 with installation set for Sept. 17 and dedication Oct. 4.
David Anderson ’66, the Loveland, Colo., sculptor who created Wil, also is the artist for Dirty Lil.
She has been sculpted at the same scale as Weary Wil, who is 8 ½ feet tall and weighs 1,000 pounds. Weary Willie, as he was originally known, has been a part of homecoming celebrations at South Dakota State since 1950, when Walt Conahan ’52 brought life to a hobo caricature drawn in the Pugsley Student Union in 1941.
Lil didn’t appear until 1976, when the ragged hippie hobo became part of the SDSU homecoming tradition.
Even before Weary Wil and Dirty Lil, students would crown a Hobo Day king and queen. In 1938 that queen was Anita Quast, a junior from Menno whose disheveled hair, decorated bonnet and poofy dress captured the bum spirit on campus.
’38 Hobo queen seen in Lil
Thanks to Quast’s daughter, her mother is coming back to campus in the spirit of Dirty Lil.
Through a gift to the SDSU Foundation during the It Starts with STATE campaign, the Robert and Anita Quast Lawe Foundation is financing the casting of the Dirty Lil sculpture as well as the cost of materials and transportation. The gift from the foundation, overseen by the Lawes’ daughter, Lonnie Humphries, also will provide an exhibit in the Hobo Day Gallery in tribute to the women of Hobo Day.
Anderson, the sculptor, has donated his creative work, just like he did for his artistry with Weary Wil.
Daughter serves as model
A youthful Anita Quast, whose image was used for the new Dirty Lil sculpture.
The image of the Dirty Lil statue is based on a photo taken of Anita Quast when she was an airline stewardess in the early 1950s. “What a tribute to leave a lasting honor to Mother on a campus she truly loved,†says Humphries, of Houston.
She has become involved in the project by modeling, drawing the “fabric†daises on Lil’s bell-bottoms and offering visual suggestions to the sculptor, Humphries says.
She adds, “The goal was to portray the joyful eagerness and experience of discovery, learning and hope for the future that made my mother’s college years at SDSU so special to her, and to make Lil a representation of the same for all students both now and in years to come.â€
Anderson began work on the Dirty Lil sculpture in December 2011. His creation went to the foundry April 4.
The 1938 Hobo Day royalty—Larry Hoscheid and Anita Quast.
Anderson says of his work, “I hope to convey to the viewer that Lil is a woman of strength and confidence who is proud to be a ‘Hobo by Choice’ and proud to be a part of the SDSU family. She is built on the caricature of Dirty Lil with layers of symbolism to celebrate the women of Hobo Day.â€
Initial unveiling in Colorado
Dirty Lil’s first public appearance will be at an unveiling Sept. 12 at Art Castings near Anderson’s studio in Loveland. Area alumni are being invited to a reception with SDSU First Lady Marcia Chicoine ’72.
The bronzed Lil then begins her road trip to Brookings. She is to arrive on campus during the week of Sept. 16 and stay inside a plywood box until her SDSU unveiling Oct. 4, which will be followed by a reception in the Hobo Gallery for past Hobo Day Committee alums as well as campus and community friends and alumni.
Wil and Lil will stay outside, keeping an eye on all current collegians carrying out the 2013 Hobo Day theme “The Tradition Continues.â€
Dave Graves
