preliminary sketch for Wichita, Kansas Post Office, Ward Lockwood

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Ward Lockwood, preliminary sketch for Wichita, Kansas Post Office
Ward Lockwood, preliminary sketch for Wichita, Kansas Post Office
Ward Lockwood
preliminary sketch for Wichita, Kansas Post Office
early 1900s
Ward Lockwood
1894–1963
preliminary sketch for Wichita, Kansas Post Office, early 1900s
Where object was made: Wichita, Kansas, United States
Material/technique: ink; wash; paper
Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 23.2 x 53.6 cm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 9 1/8 x 21 1/8 in
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 35.3 x 58.1 cm
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 13 7/8 x 22 7/8 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 24 x 32 in
Credit line: Gift from the Ward and Clyde Lockwood Collection
Accession number: 1972.0338
Not on display
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Archive Label 1999: This study of Kansas settlers is a preparatory sketch for a Wichita post office mural. Ward Lockwood was one of many artists hired by the Public Works of Art Project (PWAP), part of President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal to revive the economy by creating jobs. The subjects of PWAP murals were often uplifting scenes of American history meant to counteract the grim economic circumstances of the Great Depression. Lockwood made great efforts to ensure that the details of his mural, including the costumes and stagecoach, were historically accurate. His interest in historical accuracy was not always supported by the government, however. In an earlier version of this subject, the Native American cowered behind a rock from the onslaught of settlers. Washington bureaucrats asked Lockwood to "do something with him [the Native American] to eliminate the suggestion of the ruthless dominance of the white man." As this sketch makes evident, the artist complied by changing his role from passive victim to active participant. As this incident suggests, the history the federal government sought to promote was rigidl