1 10 1 https://openvalley.org/files/original/bae2f12692f8c8af702fb25dfd70c98f.jpg dd22a8fbe1cd9bc6e484b441773a408e https://openvalley.org/files/original/3e7b62af559d76b77c92022bfded1ed0.JPG 6a97e11b1d3b0e0fdb4a27e029e96af6 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." 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. 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 24 x 30 in. Condition: surface dirt, crayon marks 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 Wild Horses on a Dale Description An account of the resource Two horses run along an earthen path through what appears to be a stockaded chute, but upon examination the vertical columns turn out to be strata of rock, and four more horses are joining the pair from atop a stylized landform. Through a crack a blossoming tree has pushed its way into daylight; along the base of rocks grow unlikely floweres. In the distance can be seen grassy hills that might be expected in a valley, or “dale.” Lebduska gives his incongruous elements a dreamlike coherence: the similar expression upon each horse’s face; the way brown coats of hair transform into otherworldly colors upon joining the chase. About the Artist: Born in Baltimore to Czech parents, Lebduska trained to be a stained glass artist like his father, before immigrating to the US in 1912. Initially he worked as a painter of interior murals but by the late 1920s was exhibiting his own paintings. The label of Lebkuska as as a “primitive” akin to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henri_Rousseau" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Henri Rousseau</a> initially gained him attention during the 1930s and early 1940s; reportedly his paintings inspired Abby Aldrich Rockefeller to begin assembling her large collection of folk art. But as a 1941 <a href="https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/1703" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“Modern Primitives”</a> show at MoMA illustrates, it was a constrictive rubric: “All share the common denominator of Western culture at its most democratic level and all express the straightforward, innocent and convincing vision of the common man, ignorant of art or unaffected by it” (Barr). With a change in art world fashions Lebduska’s work fell out of favor during the later 1940s and ‘50s, and he descended into poverty and alcoholism. In the 1960s an art dealer named Eva Lee, impressed by one of his paintings, sought out Lebduska and helped him recover his health. He resumed painting until his death in 1966 with renewed public appreciation. 2 works at the <a href="https://americanart.si.edu/artist/lawrence-lebduska-6039" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Smithsonian American Art Museum</a>. 1 work at <a href="https://www.albrightknox.org/artworks/rca19423-horse-and-tiger" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Albright-Knox Art Gallery</a>. 3 works at <a href="http://argus.wadsworthatheneum.org/Wadsworth_Atheneum_ArgusNet/Portal/public.aspx?lang=en-US" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wadsworth Atheneum</a>. 9 more images at <a href="https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/federal-art-project-photographic-division-collection-5467/series-1/box-13-folder-34" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FAP</a>. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Lebduska, Lawrence Henry, 1894-1966 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 1938 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 #FA18197 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpeg, 831 KB jpeg, 12 MB Type The nature or genre of the resource Still image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 104 Federal Art Project Lawrence Lebduska New Deal Gallery painting