Artist

Charles L. Goeller

born Irvington, NJ 1901-died Maplewood, NJ 1955
Media - portrait_image_113213.jpg - 90146
Self-Portrait . Courtesy Newark Museum.
Also known as
  • Charles Louis Goeller
  • Charles Goeller
Born
Irvington, New Jersey, United States
Died
Maplewood, New Jersey, United States
Biography

Charles Goeller initially trained as an architect at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. In the early 1930s he was a leading artist in the development of Precisionist painting. Artists working in this abstract style used geometric forms and flat planes to document the world "objectively," making compositions that emphasized the scale and power of modern technology. Goeller exhibited his industrial landscapes widely and was also known for his passionate articles in favor of art education. He died of an aneurysm at the age of fifty-four. (Stavitsky, Emotion Expressed Through Precision: The Art of Charles Goeller, 2003)

Related Books

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1934: A New Deal for Artists
During the Great Depression, president Franklin Delano Roosevelt promised a “new deal for the American people,” initiating government programs to foster economic recovery. Roosevelt’s pledge to help “the forgotten man” also embraced America’s artists. The Public Works of Art Project (PWAP) enlisted artists to capture “the American Scene” in works of art that would embellish public buildings across the country. Although it lasted less than one year, from December 1933 to June 1934, the PWAP provided employment for thousands of artists, giving them an important role in the country’s recovery. Their legacy, captured in more than fifteen thousand artworks, helped “the American Scene” become America seen.