The Bruin, (sculpture) - Los Angeles, CA - Smithsonian Art Inventory Sculptures on Waymarking.com

This bronze statue of a bear was a gift from the UCLA Alumni Association to mark its 50th Anniversary. Previously, there was no symbol of the school mascot, the Bruin, on campus. The Bruin, walking on all fours, was intended to demonstrate a fluid forward movement symbolizing the ongoing strength and progress of UCLA.

The Bruin stands guard at Bruin Plaza, a popular gathering spot near the center of the campus. It stands beside the JD Morgan Center, home of the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame and faces east to the Ackerman Student Union and the ASUCLA Student Store. Thousands of students pass by the Bruin daily on their way to class, as it is also adjacent to Bruin Walk, the main thoroughfare between the residence halls and the central campus.

The Bruin is a teeth-baring bronze statue measuring 10 feet long, 6 feet tall, 3 feet across and weighing more than 2 tons, and billed at the time as the largest bear sculpture in the United States. Costing $37,000 to cast and another $10,000 for artist Billy Fitzgerald’s fee, the ferocious grizzly was a departure from UCLA’s familiar, friendly Joe Bruin mascot.

A plaque mounted on the base of the statue is inscribed:

"THE BRUIN" Presented to the Campus By The UCLA Alumni Association on the 50th Anniversary of its Founding September 30, 1984.

During the week before the annual football game with crosstown rivals USC, the Bruin statue is enclosed in a wooden box and groups of students known as the "Bruin Bear Security Force" camp out in Bruin Plaza.

sources: Smithsonian Institution Art Inventory UCLA Alumni Association Wikipedia entry on the UCLA - USC rivalry.

TITLE: The Bruin, (sculpture) - Los Angeles, CA ARTIST(S): B. T. Fitzgerald DATE: 1984 MEDIUM: Sculpture: Bronze, Base: concrete CONTROL NUMBER: IAS CA000306 Direct Link to the Individual Listing in the Smithsonian Art Inventory: [Web Link] PHYSICAL LOCATION: On the UCLA campus adjacent to the JD Morgan Athletic Center, 325 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA 90095 DIFFERENCES NOTED BETWEEN THE INVENTORY LISTING AND YOUR OBSERVATIONS AND RESEARCH: The inscription is mounted horizontally on the base of the sculpture in front of the bear.

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