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
Copied Gale Stockwell, Parkville, Main Street, 1933, oil on canvas, 28 1⁄4 x 35 3⁄8 in. (71.8 x 90.0 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the U.S. Department of Labor, 1964.1.124

Artwork Details

Title
Parkville, Main Street
Artist
Date
1933
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
28 1⁄4 x 35 3⁄8 in. (71.8 x 90.0 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
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/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

Luce Center Label

Gale Stockwell painted this scene of a street in Parkville, Missouri, for the Works Progress Administration. The old cars, colorful storefronts, and factory smokestack create a cheerful image of small-town America, despite the hardships faced by many midwesterners during the Depression. Paintings like this, which celebrate industry and community life, showed a nostalgic view of the past while also inspiring hope for the country's future.

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.