1
10
2
-
https://openvalley.org/files/original/48ecbdd952b3fa28646e46e44ca4c658.jpg
1a652c1352aea2da20f9ed48a6bb06c0
Still Image
A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials.
Original Format
The type of object, such as photograph, map, drawing, painting, etc., and any additional data
Photograph of etching
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Small Town Harlem
Description
An account of the resource
At the time of this painting Harlem had the highest population density in New York, so it is a surprise to see remaining pockets of its originally rural identity. On the hill above, we see newer and more expensive housing.<br /><br /><span style="text-decoration: underline;">About the Artist</span>: Born in Rogachov, Russia, Kovner—who painted under the name “Saul”—immigrated with his parents in either in 1911 or 1912 to New York. He studied there at the National Academy of Design with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Webster_Hawthorne" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Charles Hawthorne</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Auerbach-Levy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">William Auerbach-Levy</a>. Kovner then set up a studio near Central Park, whose gregarious crowds seem to have influenced many of his works, regardless of their unflinching looks at poverty. In 1935, Kovner was one of three WPA artists assisting James Michael Newell on <a href="https://livingnewdeal.org/projects/evander-childs-high-school-mural-bronx-ny/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>The Evolution of Western Civilization</em></a>—a massive, 12-panel fresco at Evander Childs High School in the Bronx. Kovner moved to Burbank, CA in the late 1940s and remained there until his death. 6 works at <a href="https://americanart.si.edu/artist/saul-kovner-2702" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Smithsonian American Art Museum</a>. 1 work at the <a href="https://www.dia.org/art/collection?keys=kovner&keyword=&start=&end=&sort_bef_combine=search_api_aggregation_6+ASC&Submit+Collection+Search=Search+Collection" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit Institute of Arts</a>. 1 work at <a href="http://collection.whitney.org/object/4903" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Whitney Museum of American Art</a>. 3 works at <a href="https://www.nga.gov/collection-search-result.html?artist=Kovner%2C%20Saul" target="_blank" rel="noopener">National Gallery of Art</a>. 1 work at the <a href="https://gallery.newarkmuseum.org/media/view/Objects/3073519/595685?t:state:flow=6f524d60-9569-439c-b346-e757c9208e43" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Newark Museum</a>. 1 work at <a href="https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/collections/objects/3676" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Princeton University Art Museum</a>. 4 more images at <a href="https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/federal-art-project-photographic-division-collection-5467/series-1/box-13-folder-8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FAP</a>.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Kovner, Saul, 1904-1982
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Federal Art Project
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1939
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Cooper, Ken
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/federal-art-project-photographic-division-collection-5467/series-1/box-13-folder-8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Archives of American Art, Federal Art Project, Photographic Division, Box 13, Folder 8.</a>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
jpeg, 384 KB
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Still image
Etching
Federal Art Project
Harlem, New York
New Deal Gallery
Saul Kovner
-
https://openvalley.org/files/original/552760dde42f537f810cc5240215d37e.JPG
b043669d5c3e2290df667e46a5dcc24e
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
New Deal Gallery
Description
An account of the resource
This collection of more than 200 paintings owes its existence to two primary causes: allocations from the Federal Art Project to a New York state tuberculosis sanatorium located at Mt. Morris--the landscapes and still lifes were thought to be restful--and to the committed volunteers who helped preserve the paintings after the hospital closed. For several decades the canvases were stored in non-climate-controlled basements; it appears that doctors and staff removed at least three dozen works as "keepsakes." <br /><br />Despite the seeming tranquility of the paintings, they were created by artists primarily from New York City whose background was more political and aesthetically adventurous than this rural location would indicate. <a href="https://openvalley.org/exhibits/show/green-new-deal/about" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Follow this hyperlink to a short introduction to the New Deal Gallery collection</a>. We're grateful to the Genesee Valley Council on the Arts for access to their collection, which has been re-photographed and appears here at two resolutions: a cropped, web-friendly file size of around 1 MB; and a high-resolution file including the painting's frame.<br /><br />Items in this collection were created according to a consistent format: a short description of each painting in formal terms, followed by a biography of each artist. Where possible we have supplied hyperlinks relevant to their lives and to other examples of their art. In order to better view them using the Omeka program, click on the "View All" option at the bottom of this page to access various sorting options.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1935-1940
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Cooper, Ken (project director)
Ritz, Abigail (photography and project assistant)
Additional research: Justin Anderson, Jessica Apthorpe, Jay Bang, Kristopher Bangsil, Julia Caldwell, Sydney Cannioto, Sabrina Chan, Paige Closser, Victoria Domon, Elana Evenden, Yadelin Fernandez, Michael Griffin, Madison Jackson, Niamh McCrohan, Ben Michalak, Ricky Noel, Elizabeth Ramsay, Skye Rose, Samantha Schmeer, John Serbalik, Marianna Sheedy, Emily Spina, Alison Stern, Ravenna VanOstrand, and Nicholas Vanamee.
Special thanks to: Deborah Bump, Mark Calicchia, Elizabeth Harris, Melissa Moody, Rebecca Lomuto, and Mai Sato.
Still Image
A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials.
Original Format
The type of object, such as photograph, map, drawing, painting, etc., and any additional data
Oil painting
Physical Dimensions
The actual physical size of the original image
21.5 x 17.5 in.
Condition: surface dirt
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Fruit and Drapery
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
jpeg, 1.1 MB
Description
An account of the resource
This complex still life plays with how the natural world makes its way into artistic forms and representation. A grouping of fruit at upper left is echoed in the fabric’s shapes at lower right, as with the bell pepper’s distinctive shape. A pear at middle right is easy to overlook because its colors blend in. Meanwhile, a ceramic teapot is painted with its own colors and floral designs (referenced in another fabric). There are three distinct pieces of cloth, whose patterns multiply by reversal and draping. In the background is either a painting of sky upon the wall, or Kovner’s painted sky for this composition.<br /><br /><span style="text-decoration: underline;">About the Artist</span>: Born in Rogachov, Russia, Kovner—who painted under the name “Saul”—immigrated with his parents in either in 1911 or 1912 to New York. He studied there at the National Academy of Design with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Webster_Hawthorne" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Charles Hawthorne</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Auerbach-Levy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">William Auerbach-Levy</a>. Kovner then set up a studio near Central Park, whose gregarious crowds seem to have influenced many of his works, regardless of their unflinching looks at poverty. In 1935, Kovner was one of three WPA artists assisting James Michael Newell on <a href="https://livingnewdeal.org/projects/evander-childs-high-school-mural-bronx-ny/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>The Evolution of Western Civilization</em></a>—a massive, 12-panel fresco at Evander Childs High School in the Bronx. Kovner moved to Burbank, CA in the late 1940s and remained there until his death. 6 works at <a href="https://americanart.si.edu/artist/saul-kovner-2702" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Smithsonian American Art Museum</a>. 1 work at the <a href="https://www.dia.org/art/collection?keys=kovner&keyword=&start=&end=&sort_bef_combine=search_api_aggregation_6+ASC&Submit+Collection+Search=Search+Collection" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit Institute of Arts</a>. 1 work at <a href="http://collection.whitney.org/object/4903" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Whitney Museum of American Art</a>. 3 works at <a href="https://www.nga.gov/collection-search-result.html?artist=Kovner%2C%20Saul" target="_blank" rel="noopener">National Gallery of Art</a>. 1 work at the <a href="https://gallery.newarkmuseum.org/media/view/Objects/3073519/595685?t:state:flow=6f524d60-9569-439c-b346-e757c9208e43" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Newark Museum</a>. 1 work at <a href="https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/collections/objects/3676" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Princeton University Art Museum</a>. 4 more images at <a href="https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/federal-art-project-photographic-division-collection-5467/series-1/box-13-folder-8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FAP</a>.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Kovner, Saul, 1904-1982
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Federal Art Project
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1935-1940
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Ritz, Abigail (photography)
Cooper, Ken (biography)
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
New Deal Gallery, Genesee Valley Council on the Arts
Object #FA18192
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Still image
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
099
Federal Art Project
New Deal Gallery
painting
Saul Kovner
still life