Update: In late 2017, after being closed for 17 years, The Statler Hotel finished it's renovation and was reopened. Only on thing was missing, The Wishing Star.
Unbelievably, the Star was found in the back yard of a former Statler Hotel employer who was allowed to take home the sculpture when the hotel closed in 2001. The gentleman who had taken home the piece generously donated the piece back to the new owners and refused any payment for it. He requested that the artwork be restored and displayed back at the hotel once the renovation was done. He also asked that his donation remain anonymous.
Today The Wishing Star has been restored and is on display once again in the reopened Statler Hotel
The Original Post
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| This rare photo and caption from the Dallas Times Herald shows a picture of the sculptor and his creation "A Wishing Star". Where is this artwork today? Nobody knows.
In 1956, the 1000 room Statler Hotel opened in downtown Dallas at a cost of $16 Million. For its time, it was the most modern hotel in the world, introducing such futuristic features as elevator music, central TV reception with a set in every room and the first ballroom with a moveable wall that could divide it into smaller sections.
The symbol of this spectacular hotel, featured on all it's literature, was the "Wishing Star" The symbol was paterned after a piece of original artwork by noted sculpture Jose de Rivera. de Rivera was know for his abstract work that can be seen from Washington D.C.'s Mall to the site of the New York World's Fair.
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By the 1990's the Statler had gone through numerous less than stellar renovations and a name change. It's glory faded, few people remember that this building was once the toast of Dallas. It's final incarnation, the Grand Hotel, closed in 2001.
Sometime during the numerous failed renovations and ownership changes, the scuplture was removed from it's perch on the second floor garden. The trail quickly got murky as recent owners say that the artwork was gone when they purchased the building. The whereabouts of 'The Wishing Star' are unclear to this day.
In the Spring of 2011, the Statler was purchased and slated for renovation and reopening. The once grand building will regain it's glory as a mid century masterpiece. It's front yard is the newly created Main Street Garden. All that will be missing from this restoration will be the return of it's once majestic symbol.
Read More about the history of The Statler Hotel.
More Missing Art of the Metroplex
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