Georgetown Waterfront

Rowland Lyon, Georgetown Waterfront, 1934, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, 1974.89.5
Rowland Lyon, Georgetown Waterfront, 1934, oil on canvas, 26 1840 in. (66.3101.5 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, 1974.89.5

Artwork Details

Title
Georgetown Waterfront
Artist
Date
1934
Dimensions
26 1840 in. (66.3101.5 cm.)
Credit Line
Transfer from the General Services Administration
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Architecture — industry — factory
  • Cityscape — District of Columbia — Washington
  • Cityscape — District of Columbia — Georgetown
  • Cityscape — river — Potomac River
  • New Deal — Public Works of Art Project — Washington, D.C.
Object Number
1974.89.5

Artwork Description

Rowland Lyon lived in Washington, D.C., his entire life. Even though he traveled abroad often, he always enjoyed painting images of his hometown. In Georgetown Waterfront, the landscape is divided into three horizontal bands: the buildings lining the Georgetown waterfront, their rippling reflections in the Potomac River, and the bare winter landscape in the foreground on the Virginia side of the river. During the 1930s, in the midst of the Great Depression, Americans saw factories and smokestacks as symbols of the country's economic recovery. Lyon painted a row of silos, buildings, and chimneys in bright, cheerful colors to celebrate industry as an essential part of the American landscape.

Works by this artist (20 items)

Anna Hyatt Huntington, Llama, 1936, cast aluminum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1967.50.12
Llama
Date1936
cast aluminum
On view
Anna Hyatt Huntington, Rhino and Lioness, ca. 1936-1955, cast aluminum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1967.50.5
Rhino and Lioness
Dateca. 1936-1955
cast aluminum
On view
Anna Hyatt Huntington, Mare and Foal, 1905, cast aluminum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1967.50.3
Mare and Foal
Date1905
cast aluminum
On view
Anna Hyatt Huntington, Wild Boar, 1936, cast aluminum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1967.50.8
Wild Boar
Date1936
cast aluminum
On view

More Artworks from the Collection

William King, Good Old Days, 1983, aluminum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Sara Roby Foundation, 1985.82.1
Good Old Days
Date1983
aluminum
Not on view
Anna Hyatt Huntington, Llama, 1936, cast aluminum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1967.50.12
Llama
Date1936
cast aluminum
On view
Unidentified (American), Fish Decoy, ca. 1940s, carved and painted wood, painted aluminum sheet, painted ferrous eye hooks, and lead weights, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Alastair B. Martin, 1999.67.15
Fish Decoy
Artist
Unidentified (American)
Dateca. 1940s
carved and painted wood, painted aluminum sheet, painted ferrous eye hooks, and lead weights
On view
Buddy Wayman, Sucker Decoy, after 1940, carved and painted wood, aluminum sheet metal, ferrous eye hook, and lead weight, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Alastair B. Martin, 1999.67.2
Sucker Decoy
Artist
Attributed to Buddy Wayman
Dateafter 1940
carved and painted wood, aluminum sheet metal, ferrous eye hook, and lead weight
On view