Existing comment:
Eugene Francis Savage
"Carrier of News and Knowledge"
1938
Oil on canvas
The mural illustrates the inscription on the building by President Lowell of Harvard which reads "Carrier of News and Knowledge; Instrument of Trade and Industry; Promoter of Mutual Acquaintance of Peace & Good Will Among Nations and Men." The artist tries to show the relation to the mail to people in all circumstances, grave, happy or tragic.
The artist was born on March 29, 1883. He studied at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Corcoran School of Art, and the American Academy in Rome; he also taught at Yale University. His art work is in the collections of many institutions including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Los Angeles Museum of Art, and Yale University.
These mural paintings were commissioned by the Section of Painting and Sculpture which was established by the Treasury in 1934. In 1939 it was absorbed, along with the WPA, into the newly created Federal Works Agency. By 1943 all New Deal art programs had been discontinued. |