Parkville, Main Street

Gale Stockwell, Parkville, Main Street, 1933, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the U.S. Department of Labor, 1964.1.124
Gale Stockwell, Parkville, Main Street, 1933, oil on canvas, 28 1435 38 in. (71.890.0 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the U.S. Department of Labor, 1964.1.124

Artwork Details

Title
Parkville, Main Street
Date
1933
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
28 1435 38 in. (71.890.0 cm.)
Credit Line
Transfer from the U.S. Department of Labor
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Architecture — vehicle — automobile
  • Figure group — female and child
  • Cityscape — street — Main Street
  • Cityscape — Missouri — Parkville
  • New Deal — Public Works of Art Project — Missouri
  • Architecture Exterior — commercial — store
Object Number
1964.1.124

Artwork Description

A mother and her young son walk down Main Street in this brightly colored scene of a small midwestern town overlooking the green valley of the Missouri River. Perhaps they are in downtown Parkville, Missouri, to shop in the little stores that line the street with goods piled appealingly in their front windows. Unable to find much market for his fine artworks in the Kansas City area during the Great Depression, artist Stockwell made his living as a commercial artist working for a chain of stores. He added appeal to this quiet town scene by using brilliant reds, greens, and blues like those he might have used in his advertising designs. In his commercial work, however, Stockwell was confined to creating an eye-catching version of nature. In fine art pieces like this one, he was free to choose and distribute hues for expressive purposes.

1934: A New Deal for Artists exhibition label

Works by this artist (4 items)

Paul Henry Ramirez, SPIN (pink), 2009, screenprint on linen canvas with rotating wall-mount armature, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2011.11.2A-B, © 2009, Paul Henry Ramirez
SPIN (pink)
Date2009
screenprint on linen canvas with rotating wall-mount armature
Not on view
Paul Henry Ramirez, SPIN (orange), 2009, screenprint on linen canvas with rotating wall-mount armature, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2011.11.3A-B, © 2009, Paul Henry Ramirez
SPIN (orange)
Date2009
screenprint on linen canvas with rotating wall-mount armature
Not on view
Paul Henry Ramirez, SPIN (red), 2009, screenprint on linen canvas with rotating wall-mount armature, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2011.11.1A-B, © 2009, Paul Henry Ramirez
SPIN (red)
Date2009
screenprint on linen canvas with rotating wall-mount armature
Not on view

Related Books

1934_500.jpg
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.

More Artworks from the Collection

James F. Dicke II, Untitled #48, 2009, mixed media on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Marsha Ralls, 2010.19.1, © 2009, James F. Dicke II
Untitled #48
Date2009
mixed media on canvas
On view
Residual Series: Weak Heart, Strong Lungs
Date2018
ink, charcoal, acrylic, spray paint, enamel, oil, metal dust and pine needles on canvas
Not on view
Rae Ferren, The Lily Pool, 2004, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Bran Ferren, 2010.59, © 2004, Rae Ferren
The Lily Pool
Date2004
oil on canvas
On view
Alexis Rockman, Gymnorhamphichthys bogardusae, 2001, oil on wood, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of William and Maria Spears, 2019.58
Gymnorhamphichthys bogardusae
Date2001
oil on wood
Not on view