1 10 1 https://openvalley.org/files/original/aa8bd4fed3c3f7aaeca1d7dbf96f5ae4.JPG 522bce62143e211fc242d295a221ab49 https://openvalley.org/files/original/b9dbbc1e6f6e453d5f5d58901fdf2dd3.JPG 1b93833950e4c2f8ad53f863d4b8fdd8 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: small tears, pin holes 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 Leeds Bridge Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpeg, 961 KB jpeg, 12 MB Description An account of the resource Portions of the stone bridge depicted here date to 1760, when a wooden structure over Catskill Creek (in Greene County) collapsed; the rest was completed in 1792 and remains standing today. Lomoff renders virtually no straight lines in his painting, whose natural features all appear to be in gently waving motion—arguably including the bridge itself. Foliage grows on the structure, its stones are the same color as those in the river bed, and its arches subtly echo those of trees and mountains in the distance. Still waters create a reflection whose effect is to create a pair of portals through to some other side. About the Artist: Born in Sevastpool, Russia, Lomoff traveled to the US in 1912 and immigrated for good in 1925, where he found employment as (among other jobs) a sign painter. His Futurist-influenced works like “Mystery” and “Legend of Atlantis” began to appear in group shows by the late 1920s. Lomoff’s exhibited numerous times with the Society of Independent Artists between the mid-1920s and early 1940s. In 1934, as part of the Public Works of Art Project, he painted a mural titled “Nursery Tales” in the Children’s Hopital on Charity Island (now named Roosevelt Island). A visitor noted that “Upon a single panel you will often find as many as three or four artists working at the same time in a spirit of unimpeachable cooperation...the old guild idea, adapted to modern usage” (Jewell). In 1937, amidst Congressional cuts to the Federal Arts Project, he was among those painters  showing at a “Pink Slip Exhibition” in New York City. Subsequently, “Toilers of the Sea” appeared at the Brooklyn Museum (1943), and he was part of an innovative 1946 exhibit at Loew’s Mayfair Theatre in Times Square—which had been organized following Thomas Hart Benton’s statement that art should be in public places and not “buried in mausoleum-like art galleries.” A 1971 retrospective of his painting might well describe his NDG landscape: “The mystic element became strong, rocks and hills taking on human form, until each animistic landscape was alive with the impress of dark figures” (O’Doherty). 10 works at the <a href="https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/artists/4052/objects" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brooklyn Museum</a>. 3 more images at <a href="https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/federal-art-project-photographic-division-collection-5467/series-1/box-14-folder-19" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FAP</a>. Sources Consulted: Edward Alden Jewell, “The Waxing Mural Tide,” New York Times 19 August 1934: 133; Brian O’Doherty, “Dual Show at Riverside Museum,” New York Times 7 June 1961: 45. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Lomoff, Joseph, 1899-1956 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 #FA18199 Type The nature or genre of the resource Still image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 106 Catskill Creek Federal Art Project Joseph Lomoff Landscape Art Leeds Bridge New Deal Gallery painting