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Few people have left such an indelible mark on Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»as Italian sculptor Charles Marega. Made shortly before he died, Marega’s twin Lions guarding the entrance to the Lions Gate Bridge are his best known work, but his sculptures also include the , the ,Ìý, and  monuments in Stanley Park, the  at City Hall, the , the  in Maple Tree Square, the  beside the art gallery, and the  on the Sun Tower. Visitors to the old Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»Art Gallery at 1145 West Georgia Street were welcomed by  of Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci.
Some of Marega’s most interesting work is relatively unknown. His proposal for a monument for his friend Pauline Johnson was rejected as too costly, but he did make her . A bust that he made of  was quietly stashed away in the City Archives after the Italian consulate shut down and fascism became almost universally reviled.
The Great Depression was a hard decade for Marega. He lost his wife and work for sculptors was scarce. No doubt his initial  was demoralizing as the clouds of war drew near, and his vision of casting the Lions Gate lions in bronze was thwarted by budgetary constraints.  after teaching an art class. He only had eight dollars in his bank account at the time, but left a rich legacy in a city that tends to look to nature for its beauty.
Source: Photo by AC Kelly, City of Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»ArchivesÂ
