Sunday, November 14, 2021

The Art of Mining in the American West

 

Yesterday, I went to the Phoenix Art Museum to see a new exhibit called "Landscapes of Extraction".  It covered 65 works from early to mid 20th century each depicting mining in some form.  I'll show you a few of my favorites from the exhibit.  This one above is by Frank "Pancho" Gates and is called "Central City".  It is dated 1937.

This one is by Louise Emerson Ronnebeck and it is titled "Silver Mine, Russell Gulch Colorado".  It was painted in 1933.  This one made me think of all those farm scenes I've admired.  Maybe it's the red in those buildings that's making me think of barns and those hills making me think of haystacks.  

This one was painted by William D White and is called "Man Pushing Ore Cart".  It was painted in 1930.  That man just seems to be in such a precarious spot with that heavy cart over a deep chasm.  

This last one is my favorite of them all.  It was painted by Helen Katharine Forbes in 1940.  It is called "Mountain & Miners Shack".  This one conjured up so many thoughts in me.  It looks so isolated making me wonder where the miner was getting his food and how he got in and out of this spot.   All four of these paintings were done in oil on canvas.


I have a new post on Sharon's Sojourns today.  I'm walking around Rockefeller Center.

7 comments:

  1. All in an interesting style, primitive, impressionist,

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  2. They all have a real 1930s look to them, Sharon.

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  3. I do like the last one, but I think I like the miner pushing the ore cart even more. That had to have been hard work!

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  4. They are beautifully done. My favorite is the last one.

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  5. These are beautiful, and I love the topic. Such a rich history of mining in the American SW.

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