Frederick George Richard Roth was an American sculptor and animalier, well known for portraying living animals. The statue of the sled dog Balto in New York City’s Central Park is perhaps his most famous piece.
Roth was born in Brooklyn, New York and briefly worked in his father’s business. He traveled to Europe, where he took art classes in several countries, including the Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna, and the Royal Academy in Berlin. He also studied animals in their natural habitat. When he returned to the United States, he continued his schooling at the New York Academy. By 1900, he was working professionally as a sculptor.
Roth won awards at the Pan-American Exposition (1901) in Buffalo, the Louisiana Purchase Exposition (1904) in St. Louis, and the Panama-Pacific International Exposition (1915) in San Francisco, and at another World’s Fair in Buenos Aires. He became the president of the National Sculpture Society. From 1934 to 1936, he worked under the Works Projects Administration as the head sculptor for the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. He was elected to the National Academy of Design in 1906.
