how history and culture come together as art || new deal murals: a legacy for today's public...

National Art Education Association

New Deal Murals: A Legacy for Today's Public Art and Art EducationAuthor(s): Connie W. KiefferSource: Art Education, Vol. 53, No. 2, How History and Culture Come Together as Art (Mar.,2000), pp. 40-45Published by: National Art Education AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3193849 .

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New Deal Murals:

A Legacy For

Today's Public Art BY CONNIE W. KIEFFER

a _u WITH PHOTOGRAPHS BY RICK HOLST

Art Education '?F ? \ .. .._?f Ax, recent discovery of 1930s New Deal murals in a school's attic has been

the impetus for identifying how the legacy of these murals impacts on

"ffi__8 H J I ^Atoday's public art and contemporary art education. In 1995, a Chicago _i_ _ _^ eighth grader, Hana Field, studying New Deal art, was the catalyst for

the discovery of the treasure of New Deal art at Highland Park High School, in Highland Park, Illinois. As Hana researched Illinois Federal art projects, she read in Mavigliano & Lawson (1990) about Highland Park's nine panels depicting industrial scenes painted by Edgar Britton, one of Chicago's outstanding muralists of the 1930s. The murals were found in the attic where they had been stored since 1955 when the building where they had been displayed was demolished. Since their discovery, they have been cleaned and restored by the Chicago Conservation Center and now hang in the school's Instructional Media Center. More importantly, the story of the Edgar Britton murals has been an impetus for student and faculty research about regional art and its role in Depression era culture and the murals' impact on today's public art and art education.

Communication At the re-dedication of Britton's murals during the 1995 Focus on the Arts, a biennial art celebration held at Highland Park High School, students shared what they learned from the discovery of the murals. Art History students investigated the nine panels representing the industries of mining, printing, farming, building, communication, transportation, steel construction, lumbering, and machine work as they were named by the 1934 Art Club students ("Art Club names murals," Shoreline, 1934). To date, they found the only student involvement with the murals was the naming of each panel. They learned that the high school had an excellent vocational program during the 1930s, including a Building and Trades program where students built homes for community members, so the industrial theme fit the

ART EDUCATION / MARCH 2000



Transportation

school and local community. Art History students also explained why this era of American art was considered artistically insignificant, but at the same time they began to question this notion. They learned that these murals were painted as part of the first of four New Deal art projects, the short-lived Public Works Art Project (PWAP). They found that Britton's selection as the artist was because of his artistic expertise in addition to the fact that he needed the $96.00 commission that artists earned for this project.

Advanced Placement Studio Art students studied the fresco painting techniques of Britton, marveling at his use of angle and perspective to depict the role of the workers and foremen. They noted the patriotic use of color: red, white, and blue. At the same time, they identified the Mexican muralist influence in both the muscular style and political meaning as indicated by a red star on a worker's shirtsleeve. Chemistry students traveled to the Chicago Conservation Center where the murals were restored, to learn about the complexity of the restoration process including the importance of chemistry knowledge in art restoration.

NEW DEAL ART PLAYED MANY ROLES IN AMERICAN LIFE

While the Federal Art projects were a way to provide economic relief for Americans, they served other purposes. Before the New Deal, most art was grounded in Western European tradition. American artists untrained in that tradition were for the most part ignored. Following that tradition, art was considered to be for the elite who could afford to view it in galleries or buy it for display in their finely appointed homes. New Deal art projects were a way "to make art more American, more accessible to the public and more democratic" (Badger, 1989, p. 218). The Federal Art projects were called "art for the millions" (O'Connor, 1973). They brought art to the countryside, to the local post offices and schools where the American public gathered. They made art accessible to Americans throughout the country.

Formal art education, at this juncture, was in its infancy evolving from its early roots in the industrial arts (Efland & Soucy, 1992). Art education was, in many cases, offered in private studios instead of public schools. If it was offered, it was sometimes considered a frill course. Art education was not considered by some to be

Machine Work

cognitively significant, nor was it seen by all as a useful tool to make connections in learning. However, as early as 1912, Highland Park High School's curriculum included both art and music (Repsholdt, 1987) as the community emphasized the importance of the arts as part of the human experience. Today's art curriculum encompasses art history, analysis, aesthetic understanding and art production.

With the country trying to work its way out of the Depression, the subject of many New Deal murals dealt with the positive attributes of the American scene. The mural themes were usually centered on what Americans had in common. As Park and Markowitz (1984) wrote, 'The depiction of ordinary people engaged in daily routines was a novelty to the public" (p. 11). The murals portrayed the developing culture of the times, ordinary people trying to make ends meet. Melosh (1991) identified "New Deal art...accomplished a radical revision by placing ordinary people at the center of the canvas and by using those images as emblems of core cultural values" (p. 230).

Never in the history of the United States has the federal government been a greater financial advocate of the arts

Printing

MARCH 2000 / ART EDUCATION

i



Steel Construction Building

than during the New Deal era. While some of the Federal Art projects were controversial because artists were hired based on financial need rather than talent, they helped many artists survive and become well known. Artists like Jackson Pollock, William H. Henderson, Ben Shahn, Seymour Fogel, and Edgar Britton received a start as WPA artists. There were long- term economic benefits for some of the artists, including Edgar Britton. For example, "for the $7,800 the Project paid Jackson Pollock, it was estimated that he produced $450,000 worth of art" (Badger, 1989, p. 218).

At the same time, the Federal Art projects were not without their problems. They were, for the most part, centered in large cities, which was a political weakness. An influx of artists influenced by socialist dogma spurred controversy about the democratic spirit of the artists. So while the legacy of the Federal Art projects is mixed, there were many artists who achieved national or international recognition and received their start in this government sponsored program. Most importantly, the Federal projects did bring art to the American public, a notion that still penetrates American society today by the many decades of

public art that have been created as a reminder of the ever changing American culture.

THE WPA INFLUENCE ON BRITTON'S CAREER AS A SCULPTOR

Highland Park's artist, Edgar Britton (1901-1982) began his artistic development as a New Deal artist. His earliest documented New Deal mural was the 1934 PWAP murals completed at Deerfield Shields High School (now Highland Park High School). These murals show a strong influence from the Mexican muralists, Diego Rivera and Jose Clemente Orozco. Rivera's influence included the fresco technique and the industrial theme. As in Rivera's Detroit frescoes, Britton created large panels anchored by the workers using the equipment of their industry. The panels depict only male workers with an overt differentiation between workers and their boss.

Britton described the fresco technique in a 1979 interview with Charles Johnson. He gave a detailed explanation of the five coats of plaster made of varied amounts of lime, sand, concrete, or white marble dust. He explained how the wall was consistently wet through the

Mining

application of the many coats. He said the paint was pure color with no binder. Britton explained that the WPA did not require a specific technique, so he chose fresco.

Born in Odessa, Nebraska, in 1901, Britton began dental school at the University of Iowa. Finding anatomy classes the most interesting, Britton dropped out and began studying art with the American regionalist, Grant Wood, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. In 1925, Britton moved to Chicago where he studied and worked with artist Edgar Miller. Together they created woodcarvings, mosaic, and stained glass. From 1934 through 1940, Britton was a New Deal artist who created seven murals for schools and post offices in Illinois and Iowa. In 1939, he was commissioned to paint a mural for the Department of Interior Building in Washington, DC. While in Washington, Britton met Boardman Robinson who later hired him as a painting and sculpture instructor at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center (O'Connor, 1973).

For health reasons, Britton moved from the Midwest to Santa Fe where he stayed briefly. He then moved to Colorado Springs to teach with Boardman Robinson, also a WPA artist


I



The students of Highland Park High School have been the greatest benefactors of the discovery of Britton's murals.... Students can view the

changing role of technology in the industries depicted in the murals. They see the absence of women in the careers of the 1930s when compared to women's options today. Using Britton's murals, U.S. History students have a visual representation of the Depression era as they read about the economic and social devastation of the period.

(Kaufmann Department Store murals in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania). In 1950, Britton shifted his medium from painting to sculpture. Until his death in 1982, Britton was a famous Colorado sculptor creating more than 40 large- scale public architectural commissions in the Colorado area. According to Duhon (1978) Britton was awarded the 1971 AIA Medal by the Colorado Society of Architects for improving the interrelationship between man and his environment, and, in 1974, he received the Governor's Award for the Arts and Humanities for contributions in the fields of sculpture and teaching. His public sculpture includes the Bronze Column for the Denver Federal

Building, the 25-foot high Prometheus Tower at the United Bank of Denver, and the Orpheus figure at Penrose Public Library in Colorado Springs.

Edgar Britton's story represents how his cultural contributions during the New Deal era transferred to his role as a contemporary sculptor. His early interest in the anatomy of the human body is evident in both his Depression murals and his public sculptures. His early work in wood, mosaic, and glass segue to his later sculptures in bronze and other metals. His beginnings in public art continued through his life although in a different medium. Britton's artistic growth evolved from the social, cultural, and artistic

influences during his early WPA years. That growth manifested itself in his sculptural expertise during his later years. Interest in Britton the artist continues as a British art historian, Andrew Hemingway, writes about Britton, the "radical" (personal communication, February 3, 1999), while a Colorado College English professor, Jane Hilberry, concentrates on Britton's role as an influential Rocky Mountain sculptor (personal communication, December 28, 1998).

WPA MURALS IMPACT ON TODAY'S PUBLIC ART AND EDUCATION

The discovery of Britton's murals at Highland Park High School continues to draw interest and create impact around the country both educationally and artistically. They have been the subject of numerous newspaper articles and they are part of a video about Illinois New Deal art. The video also includes Britton's Decatur and East Moline, Illinois post office murals. In addition, Britton's murals join other New Deal murals on the New Deal Network web site: http://newdeal.feri.org. They are part of the inspiration to establish a

harming Lumbering




Hector Duarte mural

National New Deal Preservation Association headquartered in Santa Fe, New Mexico. This group plans to identify, document, and preserve New Deal cultural contributions, complete oral histories with remaining New Deal artists, and educate people about the Federal art projects of that time.

The students of Highland Park High School have been the greatest benefactors of the discovery of Britton's murals because they are connected to thematic inquiry across the curriculum. Faculty members have integrated the study of the murals into many disciplines. Students can view the changing role of technology in the industries depicted in the murals. They see the absence of women in the careers of the 1930s when compared to women's options today. Using Britton's murals, U.S. History students have a visual representation of the Depression era as they read about the economic and social devastation of the period. They can read the work of the Federal writers

describing the local culture at that time or they can read Studs Terkel's descriptions of life in the depression era.

With music from Kander and Ebb's Flora the Red Menace and performances of the Fine Arts Department's Grapes of Wrath, students compare the 1930s to other decades of American life. At the same time, American Literature students can envision a feel of the times as they read To Kill A Mockingbird or The Great Gatsby, both set during the time the murals were created. In Speech class, they can present a soliloquy of Edgar Britton and his Midwest experience as an artist hungry for creative stimulation during a stark and down time. They can understand Britton's leanings toward socialistic dogmas as influenced by the Mexican muralists. Similarly, English As a Second Language students can learn that the Federal Art Project was modeled after a similar program in Mexico as they study the Depression era by researching other local WPA murals.

In the art program, students have had

opportunities to compare their fresco projects (taught by Gregg Montgomery, a fresco specialist who developed the project) to the fresco work of Edgar Britton. They have also been able to compare the process and subject matter of the school's recent murals to the New Deal murals. For example, with an increasingly diverse student body, recent murals depict greater diversity than the murals from the 1930s. During a recent Focus on the Arts, Mexican muralist, Hector Duarte, whose work is strongly influenced by David Siqueiros, worked collaboratively with students to design and paint the Auditorium Foyer mural. Together, they shared ideas about the appropriate message of the mural that integrates scenes from daily life of the school and community.

As students travel throughout the greater Chicago area, they see that today's public art depicts a different message about life in America than did the New Deal murals. Reardon (1998) says in an article about Chicago's




Today's public art, compared to the New Deal murals, is the result of

a collaborative effort. Rather than being a perspective of one artist,

they make a statement that represents an array of people. They

represent the experiences, dreams, and ideals of African Americans,

Puerto Ricans, and those from Mexico. They depict the young and

the elderly, the disadvantaged and the disengaged. They show the

local heroes or the clashes between the old world and the new.

contemporary murals, "In a very urban, very modem way, they capture the spirit, the hope, the beliefs, and the aspirations of a neighborhood" (p. 19). They proclaim to those who view contemporary murals that there is a richness of past tradition that remains sacred while, at the same time, expressing a hope to fulfill the American dream. The emphasis is on diversity and unity rather than on the message of commonalties of the New Deal murals.

Today's public art, compared to the New Deal murals, is the result of a collaborative effort. Rather than being a perspective of one artist, they make a statement that represents an array of people. Frequently, they have been created cooperatively. They represent the experiences, dreams, and ideals of African Americans, Puerto Ricans, and those from Mexico. They depict the young and the elderly, the disadvantaged and the disengaged. They show the local heroes or the clashes between the old world and the new.

Today's public art is, on the whole, privately funded except for minimal allocations from the National Endowment for the Arts. The days of New Deal government support of the arts have passed, but their legacy leaves

motivation for an emphasis on public artistic expression that becomes the culture and expresses the positive spirit of all people who live in America. At the same time, both the New Deal murals and today's murals offer visual models that enable educators to connect with the past and present and explore a set of new learning experiences in a range of important educational settings.

Connie W. Kieffer chairs the Fine and Applied Arts Departments at Highland Park High School in Highland Park, Illinois. She is afounding member of the National New Deal Preservation Association.

REFERENCES Art club names murals. (1934, Dec.), Shoreline

school newspaper. Highland Park High School, Highland Park, IL.

Badger, A.J. (1989). The New Deal. New York: Hill and Wang.

Duhon, H. (1978, May). Works of famous sculptor embellish campus. The Colorado Alumnus. Boulder: University of Colorado.

Efland, A., & Soucy, D. (1992). Who was Isaac Edwards Clarke, why did he do what he did, and why should we care? In P. Amburgy, D. Soucy, M. A. Stankiewicz, B. Wilson, & M. Wilson. (Eds.), The history of art education (pp. 138-149). Reston, VA: National Art Education Association.

Johnson, C. (1979, Aug. 21). An interview with EdgarBritton. Denver, CO: Denver Public Library.

Mavigliano, G.J., & Lawson, R.A. (1990). The federal art project in Illinois. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press.

McElvaine, R.S. (1993). The great Depression. New York: Times Books.

Melosh, B. (1991). Engendering culture: Manhood and womanhood in New Deal public art and theatre. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Press.

O'Connor, F.V. (Ed.). (1973). Artfor the millions. Boston: New York Graphic Society.

Park M., & Markowitz, G.E. (1984). Democratic vistas. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.

Reardon, P.T. (1998, April 5). Group portraits: A new mural guide will present the calling cards of communities. Chicago Tribune Magazine, 18-20.

Repsholdt, T.P. (1987). Highland Park High School: A century of service 1887- 1987. Highland Park, IL: Township High School District 113.




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