Joy on the Kaw Valley Loam

Ernest Hubert Deines

1894–1967

Joy on the Kaw Valley Loam, 1946

Where object was made: United States

Material/technique: wood engraving

Dimensions:
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 305 x 457 mm
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 12 1/2 x 18 0.9921 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 14 x 19 in

Credit line: Museum purchase

Accession number: 1979.0067

Not on display

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Label texts

Exhibition Label: "A Kansas Arts Sampler," Oct-2004, Kate Meyer Deines utilizes the exacting technique of wood engraving to realize this vision of a family harvesting potatoes, a crop less typically associated with Kansas agriculture than corn or wheat. The success of this crop in the Kaw Valley was documented as early as 1917, when one Mr. Clifford Morse of DeSoto estimated his potato yield 175 to 200 bushels per acre. Archive Label 2003: Ernest Hubert Deines was born near Russell, Kansas. After three years at the Kansas City Art Institute, Deines studied two additional years at the Academy Julian in Paris, France. He did not pursue a career in fine arts for another decade, but once he mastered the technique of wood engraving, he was recognized nationally for his work. Archive Label 1999: Potatoes were an important part of the farm family's diet because they kept through the winter in cellars. The joy referred to in the title suggests that this Kaw Valley family would eat well that year and possibly have plenty left over to take to market in a nearby town such as Lawrence.