View of Artist’s Home

Pedro Cervántez, View of Artist's Home, 1938, oil on fiberboard, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, 1985.8.23
Copied Pedro Cervántez, View of Artist's Home, 1938, oil on fiberboard, 20 1⁄8 x 32 in. (51.1 x 81.2 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, 1985.8.23

Artwork Details

Title
View of Artist’s Home
Artist
Date
1938
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
20 1⁄8 x 32 in. (51.1 x 81.2 cm.)
Credit Line
Transfer from the General Services Administration
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on fiberboard
Classifications
Subjects
  • Occupation — art — artist
  • New Deal — Works Progress Administration, Federal Art Project — New Mexico
  • Object — furniture — chest
  • Architecture Exterior — detail — fence
  • Architecture Exterior — domestic — house
  • Architecture Exterior — domestic — Cervantez
Object Number
1985.8.23
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1985.8.23

Artwork Description

Pedro Cervántez painted this view of his porch and property in New Mexico at a pivotal moment in his career. In 1938 he was thrust into the New York art scene with a Museum of Modern Art show that celebrated contemporary artists. In the 1930s, critics praised folk art for its specifically American character, and championed unknown artists like Cervántez for being artists "of the people," working in an authentically American style. View of Artist's Home has the forthright drawing and fresh colors of folk painting. The image captures the humble, comforting intimacy of the farm and the vast sweep of land and sky that surrounds it.