Post by jeannerené on Dec 14, 2007 23:04:57 GMT -8
Another Regionalist, Grant Wood, used his talent for realism in his depictions of the American scene. The famous painting by him entitled American Gothic (fig.2) contains elements reflecting life in the Midwest and its people. The man and woman appear stern and strong, he with pitchfork in hand as she looks off to the right. Wood included a Gothic window behind the pair as a statement of faith and tradition. The work is painted with sharply contrasting tones and hard lighting techniques that give the painting an intense realism. American Gothic could be seen as the painters reaction against the sophisticated and cosmopolitan abstract art of his time.
home.sprynet.com/~bdsalern/amart1.htm
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He recruited his sister Nan to model the woman, dressing her in a colonial print apron mimicking 19th century Americana. The man is modeled on Wood's dentist, Dr. Byron McKeeby of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The three-pronged hay fork is echoed in the stitching of the man's overalls, the Gothic window of the house and the structure of the man's face. Each element was painted separately; the models sat separately and never stood in front of the house.
American Gothic
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Gothic
I met Nan Wood in the early 80's. At the time I was in an original production in L.A. which used "American Gothic" as its title and the picture on our program and advertising. Of course, all this required permission from Grant Wood's sister, Nan.
She attended a performance and signed the programs for that evening.
All that the wikipedia reference sites, I remember her telling us.... except for one thing that never seems to be mentioned. Nan Wood told us that the house used as a model for the background was actually the local "house of ill repute," but it was exactly what her brother wanted in its look.
