Study for the Land Grant Frescoes
Item
Title
Study for the Land Grant Frescoes
Creator
Henry Varnum Poor
American, 1887-1970
American, 1887-1970
Date
1939
Materials
Ink, charcoal, and pastel on paper
Measurements
14 x 16 3/4 inches (35.5 x 42.5 cm)
Description
Henry Varnum Poor set to work on the Land Grant Frescoes immediately after signing the contract, in September 1939. This drawing, annotated for content and with the right portion of the mural yet to be realized, is one of the artist’s first, a preparatory study for the design that Poor presented to the Penn State Board of Trustees just a few months into the project.
Several of the painting’s principal motifs have begun to take shape here. In the center stands a monumental Abraham Lincoln, signer of the 1862 Morrill Act, who passes the proverbial Tree of Knowledge to a student, beneficiary of the president’s action. To the far left, a young man on horseback prepares to ride off to school for the first time. Between these two segments, a few tentative lines give shape to a group of students examining their experimental plots. Evidently less certain of this section’s placement, Poor utilized the space below to sketch out a number of compositional possibilities.
Several of the painting’s principal motifs have begun to take shape here. In the center stands a monumental Abraham Lincoln, signer of the 1862 Morrill Act, who passes the proverbial Tree of Knowledge to a student, beneficiary of the president’s action. To the far left, a young man on horseback prepares to ride off to school for the first time. Between these two segments, a few tentative lines give shape to a group of students examining their experimental plots. Evidently less certain of this section’s placement, Poor utilized the space below to sketch out a number of compositional possibilities.
Source
Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, Gift of Miss Anne Poor
Identifier
82.154
Rights
This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.