Happy Birthday Charles Sheeler

Precisionist painter and photographer Charles Sheeler was born on this day in 1883.

Connecticut Barns in Landscape reflects Charles Sheeler's interest in America's past as an integral part of modernism. His crisp, precisionist painting style is visible in the clean, almost photographic lines of the barns.

Sheeler started his career intending to become a fine artist, but he made his living as a commercial photographer for many years. Eventually, his photographs were promoted as artworks in their own right.

Pictured: Charles Sheeler, 1883–1965, Connecticut Barns in Landscape, 1934, oil, 23 1/8 x 29 1/8 in., Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from General Services Administration.