Jim Henson Memorial

One of the genuises of Jim Henson was how he made the Muppets and other puppets seem so real.  Many people have spoken about how they forget that these characters were not real, and talked to them like normal people. 

Jim Henson went to University of Maryland at College Park, and there is a Jim Henson Memorial Statue in front of the student union on campus that was a gift from the class of 1998.  The statue depics Henson and Kermit sitting on a bench together talking animatedly, and Kermit touching Henson's hand fondly.  The statue is surrounded by the Henson Memorial Garden, designed by landscape architect Philip Cho as a gift from the classes of 1994 and 1999. 

The cool story about the statue is how the sculptor, Jay Hall Carpenter, won the commission.  When the commission was announced, Jim's widow Jane Henson stated, "His grasp of Jim’s work and spirit makes him the ideal artist to create this statue of Jim Henson and Kermit the Frog." 

Carpenter explained that he differed from the traditional pose of Kermit sitting on Henson's shoulders.  He stated, "My idea was a little different. Jim always presented Kermit as a separate entity so I wanted to do that as well.  The way I see it, they're talking about their next big project, and, so they're in this animated discussion, and in the middle of it, Kermit reaches over and touches Jim, as a little gesture of solidarity." 
Carpeted hoped the statue "will capture the personality of both Jim Henson and his created partner Kermit.  Their whimsy and humor will be conveyed through the depiction of their light-hearted interaction." 

I think he succeeded, and it's a great tribute to a great man.