Island Dock Yard

Karl Fortess, Island Dock Yard, 1934, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the U.S. Department of Labor, 1964.1.94
Karl Fortess, Island Dock Yard, 1934, oil on canvas, 32 1448 18 in. (81.8122.2 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the U.S. Department of Labor, 1964.1.94

Artwork Details

Title
Island Dock Yard
Artist
Date
1934
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
32 1448 18 in. (81.8122.2 cm.)
Credit Line
Transfer from the U.S. Department of Labor
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Architecture — vehicle — truck
  • Architecture — industry — Island Dock Co. Inc.
  • New Deal — Public Works of Art Project — New York State
  • Landscape — bird’s eye view
  • Architecture — vehicle — train
  • Architecture — industry — shipyard
Object Number
1964.1.94

Artwork Description

Trains, trucks, and industrial buildings were what Karl Fortess envisioned when the Public Works of Art Project suggested that he depict "the American Scene." The artist left his home in the picturesque artists' colony of Woodstock, New York, and traveled ten miles to Kingston to make this painting. Kingston had long been a thriving Hudson River port town that supplied Pennsylvania coal and local brick, stone, and cement to New York City. The Depression slowed shipping, but a newly invented concrete mixture stimulated the local cement business. Fortess’s pictorial research at Kingston was demanding, as he noted, "Inclement weather and bad roads have made it impossible to go into Kingston as often as necessary."

Fortess described his painting as "a view of the Kingston Point railway yard, showing track intersections, [a] station, freight trains, . . . shacks, and [a] background of buildings with a suggestion of a plain and barren winter trees [on] a grey day." The artist emphasized the angular geometry of the structures. He played the predominant shadowy gray colors against spots of intense red, yellow, and blue. Trucks and trains hurry to and fro, but the action proceeds without the presence of a single visible human figure.

1934: A New Deal for Artists exhibition label

Works by this artist (162 items)

Mingering Mike, MERCY: "DIG IT" / WELL SHE LOVE'S ME, MINGERING MIKE & HIS FRACTURED SOUL BAND, ca. 1972 - 1975, ink and marker on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mike Wilkins and Sheila Duignan and museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2013.8.85.2, © Mingering Mike
MERCY: DIG IT” / WELL SHE LOVE’S ME, MINGERING MIKE & HIS…
Dateca. 1972 - 1975
ink and marker on paper
Not on view
Mingering Mike, Gold Pot Records: MINGERING MIKE: SWEET WOMAN OF MINE, ca. 1972, ink, marker, crayon, and paint on paperboard, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mike Wilkins and Sheila Duignan and museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2013.8.110, © Mingering Mike
Gold Pot Records: MINGERING MIKE: SWEET WOMAN OF MINE
Dateca. 1972
ink, marker, crayon, and paint on paperboard
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

Claire Falkenstein, City is Man, 1941-1952, linocut, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of The Falkenstein Foundation, 2019.27.14, ©1997, The Falkenstein Foundation
City is Man
Date1941-1952
linocut
Not on view
Claire Falkenstein, Untitled, 1976, embossed paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of The Falkenstein Foundation, 2019.27.18, ©1997, The Falkenstein Foundation
Untitled
Date1976
embossed paper
Not on view
Claire Falkenstein, Mandala, 1977, lithograph, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of The Falkenstein Foundation, 2019.27.19, ©1997, The Falkenstein Foundation
Mandala
Date1977
lithograph
Not on view
Nathan Oliveira, Site with Blue and White, 1978, monotype, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Moses Lasky, 2004.32.14
Site with Blue and White
Date1978
monotype
Not on view