Back of the Yards

Mitchell Siporin, Back of the Yards, ca. 1937, pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from General Services Administration, 1971.447.80
Mitchell Siporin, Back of the Yards, ca. 1937, pencil on paper, sheet: 20 5823 34 in. (52.460.3 cm) irregular, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from General Services Administration, 1971.447.80

Artwork Details

Title
Back of the Yards
Date
ca. 1937
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
sheet: 20 5823 34 in. (52.460.3 cm) irregular
Credit Line
Transfer from General Services Administration
Mediums
Mediums Description
pencil on paper
Classifications
Subjects
  • Figure group
  • Polish
  • New Deal — Works Progress Administration, Federal Art Project — Illinois
  • Architecture Exterior — domestic — house
  • Architecture Exterior — industry — storage tank
Object Number
1971.447.80

Artwork Description

The yards in this title refer to the Union Stock Yards near a residential neighborhood in Chicago. Siporin’s father was a union organizer, and the artist was especially sensitive to the plight of the homeless and dispossessed during the Great Depression. The mother, father, and child form a compositional unit in the center, while the man in a trench coat is a menacing figure. In the painting based on this drawing, the artist eliminated the man in the coat, focusing the viewer’s attention on the family.

Graphic Masters II: Highlights from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2009

Works by this artist (4 items)

Charles White, The Children, 1950, ink and graphite on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Julie Seitzman and museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2009.13
The Children
Date1950
ink and graphite on paper
Not on view
Charles White, Love Letter, 1971, color lithograph on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of June Wayne, 1991.179.14, © 1971, Heritage Gallery, Los Angeles
Love Letter
Date1971
color lithograph on paper
Not on view
Charles White, Love Letter, 1971, color lithograph on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of June Wayne, 1991.179.15, © 1971, Heritage Gallery, Los Angeles
Love Letter
Date1971
color lithograph on paper
Not on view
Charles White, Hasty B, 1970, lithograph on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1979.155.1
Hasty B
Date1970
lithograph on paper
Not on view

More Artworks from the Collection

Lee Godie, To the Dynamic Sarlo (Woman in Red with Decorated Hat), 1960s, oil and acrylic on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 1997.124.22
To the Dynamic Sarlo (Woman in Red with Decorated Hat)
Date1960s
oil and acrylic on canvas
Not on view
Barry Dalgleish, Interior with Trunk, 1984, acrylic and oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Sara Roby Foundation, 1986.84.2
Interior with Trunk
Date1984
acrylic and oil on canvas
Not on view
Stanley Edwards, Infant in Altar IV, 1965, oil and acrylic on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. David K. Anderson, Martha Jackson Memorial Collection, 1980.137.24
Infant in Altar IV
Date1965
oil and acrylic on canvas
Not on view