The struggle and poverty he observed in New York City engendered a concern for society, which he expressed in cartoons, poetry, and sculpture.
The school was created to provide arts education for New York's immigrant community and remained in operation for almost twenty years.
[1] Ruotolo was most well known for his portrait sculpture, including busts of Enrico Caruso, Arturo Toscannini, Thomas Edison, Theodore Dreiser, Helen Keller, Albert Einstein, Benito Mussolini, and the "Four Freedoms."
Sculptures: In addition to his career as sculptor and teacher, Ruotolo also was a critic, editor, poet, illustrator and cartoonist under the nom de plume "Bayard".
In 2004, Joseph Sciorra and Peter G. Vellon curated the exhibition "The Art of Freedom: Onorio Ruotolo and the Leonardo da Vinci School.