DANBURY, CONN. — In the early 1900s, nearly a quarter of the hats sold in the United States were made in Danbury. The local hatting industry started in the city more than 100 years before that, and Danbury is still known today as “Hat City.”

As a tribute to the city’s history, David Boyajian, an adjunct professor of art at Western Connecticut State University, was commissioned to sculpt the ‘hat maker,’ a 14-foot bronze and steel sculpture that sits outside City Hall at 133 Deer Hill Ave. On Monday, June 20, 2016, at 4 p.m., there will be a ceremony to officially dedicate the artwork to the city.

“Mr. Boyajian’s sculpture is a reflection of our community’s hatting history,” said Brigid Guertin, executive director and city historian at Danbury Museum & Historical Society. “He has done a lovely job of presenting a hatter at work, using diverse materials, and in a manner that invites further discovery by the viewer. This wonderful piece is an open, flowing design that presents viewers with an opportunity to glance at the past or walk right up to it.”

Boyajian, who teaches drawing and design, earned his Master of Fine Arts in Sculpture from Maryland Institute. He has completed dozens of monumental commissioned work and works primarily in steel. His “Harvest Gate” was commissioned in 1994 by the Hunger Task Force of Leadership Greater Hartford to raise funds and awareness for hunger and is an entrance to the Main Street Farmers Market in Hartford’s downtown.

Sponsors for the sculpture are The Hatting Monument Committee, Union Savings Bank, City of Danbury, and Friends of the Danbury Museum & Historical Society.

Western Connecticut State University offers outstanding faculty in a range of quality academic programs. Our diverse university community provides students an enriching and supportive environment that takes advantage of the unique cultural offerings of Western Connecticut and New York. Our vision: To be an affordable public university with the characteristics of New England’s best small private universities.