The Grotesques


The new grotesques were placed atop Dyche Hall in 2022, so be sure to look up before you enter the museum. The original grotesques are on display on the 6th floor, near the elevator.



In 2017, the limestone grotesque statues which sat atop Dyche Hall since the early 1900s were removed to prevent further damage from the elements. A team of experts, who combined old world craft and modern technology, was assembled to create new grotesques to replace the old. View the new grotesques before they are placed on top of Dyche Hall and learn about the processes of the artists, Laura and Karl Ramberg, and KU Architecture faculty members Amy and Keith Van de Riet through a mini-documentary and displays of selected sketches and scale models that were created as part of the process.  

We're incredibly grateful for the generous contributions that made this important project possible. The original limestone grotesques were created 1902 and 1903 by Joseph Roblado Frazee.  

About the Exhibit

  • 6th Floor

grotesque sketch

Beginning sketches

sculpting outside dyche

Shaping the bodies

7 grotesques

The new grotesques were displayed briefly in the museum before they were placed atop Dyche Hall in 2022.