Studies for Imprisonment and Release

Item

Title

Studies for Imprisonment and Release

Creator

Henry Varnum Poor
American, 1887-1970

Date

c. 1935

Materials

Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building, Washington, D.C.
Fresco

Measurements

25 1/4 x 11 1/4 inches (64.1 x 28.6 cm)

Description

In 1935, Poor received a commission to decorate the areas surrounding four doors in the Attorney General’s suite in the Department of Justice building. He began the project in March 1936 and completed it within five months. This painting is a study, executed in true fresco, for two of the three panels that adorn the Office of the Attorney General.

The Justice Department building was one of numerous federal structures in Washington, D.C., undergoing decoration in the 1930s under the auspices of the Section of Fine Arts, and many of the nations most highly regarded artists were involved. In 1938, Penn State professors Harold E. Dickson, Francis E. Hyslop, and J. Burn Helme traveled to the city in an effort to find the appropriate artist for their planned fresco in Old Main. They had initially hoped to hire Pennsylvania artist George Biddle, then one of the leading muralists in the country. When they viewed Poor’s frescoes in the Justice building, however, they knew he was the right person for what they had in mind.

Source

Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, Gift of Miss Anne Poor

Identifier

80.59

Rights

This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.

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