Clearing the Right of Way (mural study, Garrett, Indiana Post Office)

Joe Cox, Clearing the Right of Way (mural study, Garrett, Indiana Post Office), ca. 1938, oil on canvas mounted on paperboard, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the Internal Revenue Service through the General Services Administration
, 1962.8.66
Joe Cox, Clearing the Right of Way (mural study, Garrett, Indiana Post Office), ca. 1938, oil on canvas mounted on paperboard, 33 1429 38 in. (84.374.6 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the Internal Revenue Service through the General Services Administration , 1962.8.66

Artwork Details

Title
Clearing the Right of Way (mural study, Garrett, Indiana Post Office)
Artist
Date
ca. 1938
Dimensions
33 1429 38 in. (84.374.6 cm)
Credit Line
Transfer from the Internal Revenue Service through the General Services Administration 
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas mounted on paperboard
Classifications
Subjects
  • Architecture — vehicle — train
  • Study — mural study
  • New Deal — Treasury Section of Painting and Sculpture — Indiana
  • Occupation — industry — lumber
  • Figure group — male
  • Cityscape — Indiana — Garrett
  • Architecture Exterior — civic — post office
Object Number
1962.8.66

Artwork Description

During the 1930s, Joe Cox worked for the Works Progress Administration, a government-sponsored program that put artists to work and made them part of America’s workforce. He identified with manual laborers whose survival was at stake, and Cox’s mural study for the Garrett, Indiana, post office reflects his sympathies. He chose to show the loggers hard at work, their muscular bodies bending over their tasks. Garrett had been mapped out in the 1870s by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. The Chicago division of the B&O main line ran through, carrying people and goods to Baltimore and Washington, fueling Garrett’s economy and providing work for townspeople. During the Depression, however, the railroad’s consolidation led to many layoffs. This mural would have served as a reminder of the town’s heyday, when hard work and risk taking brought prosperity.

Works by this artist (6 items)

Warren Mac Kenzie, Teapot, ca. 1980, stoneware and temmoku glaze with cane, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift from the collection of Michael Peter Giza, 1998.55.2A-B
Teapot
Dateca. 1980
stoneware and temmoku glaze with cane
On view
Warren Mac Kenzie, Six-sided Lidded Pot, ca. 1980, glazed stoneware, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift from the collection of Michael Peter Giza, 1998.55.5A-B
Six-sided Lidded Pot
Dateca. 1980
glazed stoneware
On view
Warren Mac Kenzie, Yunomi, ca. 1980, stoneware and glaze, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift from the collection of Michael Peter Giza, 1998.55.3
Yunomi
Dateca. 1980
stoneware and glaze
On view
Warren Mac Kenzie, Yunomi, ca. 1980, stoneware and glaze, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift from the collection of Michael Peter Giza, 1998.55.4
Yunomi
Dateca. 1980
stoneware and glaze
On view

More Artworks from the Collection

Irmgard Mezey, Bowl, ca. 1975, stoneware with feldspathic glaze, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1975.126
Bowl
Dateca. 1975
stoneware with feldspathic glaze
Not on view
Frank Boyden, Tom Coleman, Turban (Heron) Vessel, 1986, stoneware, manganese slip, and copper luster, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Smithsonian Women's Committee, 1988.22
Turban (Heron) Vessel
Date1986
stoneware, manganese slip, and copper luster
On view
Marguerite Wildenhain, Saucer, ca. 1971, glazed stoneware, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Alexander L. and Frances J. Pickens, 1991.161.5.1
Saucer
Dateca. 1971
glazed stoneware
On view
Richard DeVore, Untitled (#403) Vessel, 1983, multi-glazed stoneware, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1989.8
Untitled (#403) Vessel
Date1983
multi-glazed stoneware
Not on view