Jo Cain

Chemists American Scene Mid 20th Century Modern Social Realism WPA Science Mural

c. 1930s

"Good Health Week" WPA American Scene Mid 20th Century Modern Social Realism Jo Cain (1904 – 2003) Good Health Week 10 ½ x 15 1/2 inches Oil on pape...

WPA Post Office Mural Study American Scene Regionalism Social Realism Louise Emerson Ronnebeck (1901 - 1980) Oil Riggers, Mural Study Image: 6 1/2 x 37 inches Watercolor and egg tem...

This mural study is part of our exhibition America Coast to Coast: Artists of the 1930s Industry and Commerce, 1936, tempera on panel, 16 ½ x 39 ½ inches, signed verso “John Ballator, Portland Ore.” provenance includes: J.C. Penney Company, represented by Russell Tether Fine Arts Assoc.; presented in a newer wood frame About the Painting Industry and Commerce is a prime example of WPA Era muralism. Like a Mediaeval alter, this mural study is filled with icons, but the images of saints and martyrs are replaced with symbols of America's gospel of prosperity through capitalism. Industry and Commerce has a strong narrative quality with vignettes filling the entire surface. Extraction, logistics, design, power generation, and manufacturing for printing, chemicals, automobiles and metal products are all represented. To eliminate any doubt about the mural's themes, Ballator letters a description into the bottom of the study. Ballator also presents an idealized version of industrial cooperation, as his workers, lab-coated technicians and tie-wearing managers work harmoniously toward a common goal in the tidy and neatly designed environments. Although far from the reality of most industrial spaces, Ballator's study reflects the idealized and morale boosting tone that many mural projects adopted during the Great Depression. About the Artist John R Ballator achieved success as a muralist, lithographer, and teacher during the Great Depression. Born in Oregon, he studied at the Portland Museum Art School, the University of Oregon and at Yale University where he received a Bachelor of Fine Art. In 1936, Ballator was commissioned to paint a mural panel for the new Department of Justice Building in Washington DC, an important project that spanned five years with several dozen artists contributing a total of sixty-eight designs. Ballator completed murals for the St. Johns Post Office and Franklin High School, both in Portland, Oregon. He also contributed to the 1938 murals at Nathan Hale School in New Haven, Connecticut. During the late 1930s, Ballator taught art for several years at Washburn College in Topeka, Kanas, where he completed a mural for the Menninger Arts & Craft Shop before accepting a professorship at Hollins College...

This original 1940s American Modernist gouache painting, "Artists Sketching (California)," captures a dynamic scene of three artists at work against a majestic mountain backdrop. With expressive brushwork and a rich color palette, the piece embodies Frederick E. Shane’s signature blend of realism and modernist abstraction. Signed, titled, and dated by the artist in the lower margin, this remarkable artwork reflects the era’s Regionalist influence and the artist’s keen eye for capturing creative moments in the natural landscape. The painting is professionally housed in a custom archival frame, ensuring long-term preservation. Frame dimensions: 25.5 x 37.5 x 1.5 inches. Image size: 20.25 x 29.75 inches. Provenance: Estate of the Artist, Frederick Shane About the Artist: Frederick E. Shane (1906-1992) A celebrated Missouri Regionalist painter and printmaker, Frederick E. Shane was known for his compelling genre scenes, landscapes, seascapes, and portraits in a variety of media, including oil, watercolor, gouache, tempera, and lithography. While fundamentally a realist, Shane often incorporated elements of abstraction, expressionism, and surrealism, adding depth and emotion to his compositions. During the summers of 1925-26, Shane studied under Randall Davey at the Broadmoor Academy in Colorado Springs, an institution founded in 1919 by philanthropists Spencer and Julie Penrose. Shane remained closely connected to the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, the Academy’s successor, throughout the 1940s and early 1950s, participating in Artists West of the Mississippi exhibitions and forming lasting friendships with key figures like Boardman Robinson and Adolph Dehn...