Mosaics Sites

Aimee Gorham created a large wooden marquetry at the rear of Ainsworth auditorium. The piece is usually hidden behind band equipment and room dividers. In danger of damage unless acknowledged as US property, not Portland Public School property. According to Barry N. Ball (2004) "During the WPA period, Gorham did a large number of documented marquetry projects, actually starting in 1933 under the short-lived Public Works of Art Project (PWAP) when she demonstrated her sculptural skills with a bas relief of Abigail Scott Duniway, shown at the Portland Art Museum in 1934. She also did watercolors of fairy tales and prints of civilian...

The Beach Chalet contains several New Deal artworks.  Include decorative mosaics by Primo Caredio, done in 1937.  They are located in the South Staircase and over the north and east doorways of the large first-floor lobby. All the Beach Chalet artworks were done by unemployed artists hired by the Federal Art Project (FAP), a branch of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). 

Artist Stanley Spohn designed a tile mosaic for a drinking fountain at Belmont High School in Los Angeles, CA. He received funding from the Federal Arts Project (FAP). Spohn described the mosaic as being "handled in a manner reminiscent of the Persian rather than the Italian School, which conforms with Umbrian type of architecture in color and in its vertical and horizontal arrangement of the tessera method of making mosaic. "It portrays four of the intellectual achievements. Science is shown by a conventionalized microscope on the observation platform of which there is a crystal, suggestive of the polarization of light. Behind the...

These two 50' x 45' low-relief polished marble mosaics depicting "Organic and Inorganic Science" by the Swiss-born artist Herman Volz are located in the south portico of San Francisco City College's Science Hall. Juan Breda served as assistant mosaicist for the project. The images represent fields such as physics, chemistry, biology, and mathematics in tiny tiles. Text accompanying the mural reads 'Give me a base and I move the world.' Restored in 2005, the murals were originally part of the Golden Gate International Exhibition's "Art in Action" show on Treasure Island before they were moved to the college. "Completed on site,...

"Coral Way School, built as Coral Way Elementary School in 1936, is a K-8 school located in Miami, Florida, USA... The school building was designed by August Geiger, a noted South Florida architect who worked for the Dade County School Board. The architecture is in a Mediterranean Revival style with arcaded walkways around interior courtyards resplendent with lush foliage. It was constructed under the auspices of the Works Projects Administration and completed in 1936."   (wikipedia) The school also received numerous WPA artworks, including several mosaics of local animals and Art Deco mosaics of figures picking oranges.

Artist Caspar Duchow created four 4' x 6' mosaics depicting animals for the East Whittier Middle School: "Hippos," "Waterfowl," "Tropical Birds" and "Monkey." The mosaics were created in 1937 with funding from the WPA Federal Art Project.

Stanton Macdonald-Wright designed the mosaic "Early (Spanish) California" for Edison Middle School in Los Angeles, CA, in 1937. It was funded by the WPA Federal Art Project (FAP) and hangs in the school auditorium's foyer. Albert King likely executed the tile work. The mosaic depicts vaqueros wrangling cows, miners panning for gold, and workers building a railroad. A “Californio” couple stands in the center of the image. Tiles of different shapes give the mosaic a variety of textures. Macdonald-Wright was supervisor for the Southern California division of the FAP from 1935 to 1943. He is considered “an important proponent of the nonrepresentational styles of...

This Glendale Junior College fountain "Memorial to C.A. Nelson" is by Robert Boag. Created out of small tiles, it is about five feet tall and has three tiers. The bottom shows an ocean scene, the middle prehistoric villagers, and the eight-sided top shows birds in flight.

This colorful mosaic by Stanton Macdonald-Wright is installed above the doors to the auditorium at Hooper Avenue Elementary School in Los Angeles, CA. Entitled "Products of Nature and Inventions of Man," the mosaic was created under the auspices of the WPA Federal Art Project (FAP) in 1936-37. A 1936 article in California Arts & Architecture described the partially completed work: "This mosaic mural will be approximately eight feet wide by seven feet high. It symbolizes the products of nature and the works of man. The mosaic, a form of mural decoration developed by the Federal Art Project in southern California, is...

This “Floor mosaic of twelve figures engaged in traditional Hawaiian athletic activities, done in polished black basalt set into a flagstone floor” (source note 1), was completed by Marguerite Louis Blasingame in 1935 for the Works Progress Administration (WPA).

Sargent Johnson created this two part project "Sea Forms" for the WPA "comprised of a 30 feet long, 14 feet high greenish-gray slate facade titled, Sea Forms, that was placed over the main entrance to the Maritime Museum on Polk Street and a 125 feet long, 14 feet high glazed tile of green and white abstract patterns resembling sea forms that covered the stair wells to the promenade deck." The glazed tile mural is located at the north portico.

In 1937, Bessie Heller designed a pair of tile mosaics for wall fountains at Mountain View High School in El Monte, CA. Heller received funding from the Federal Art Project (FAP). Heller worked in the art department at MGM Studios. Her other FAP works in the region include a mural, "The Map Makers of the World" (1939), at Virgil Middle School in Los Angeles, CA.

Floor mosaics depicting a variety of images pertaining to aviation can be found throughout the Long Beach Airport Terminal. They were created for the terminal in 1939-41 by then 28-year-old artist Grace Richardson Clements. Clements was hired through the Work Projects Administration (WPA) Federal Art Project. In 2012, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reported: "For years, works of art lay hidden beneath the feet of millions of passengers who annually frequent the Long Beach Airport. It wasn't until recently, when the airport's maintenance team was restoring the terminal, that the 1941 mosaics by Works Progress Administration artist Grace Clements were found underneath...

A huge 14' x 125' glazed tile mural, "Sea Forms," was created by African American sculptor Sargent Johnson in 1939-40 for the bathhouse of the former San Francisco Aquatic Park, built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA).  It was funded by the Federal Art Project (FAP). It sits on the bayside balcony/terrace of what is now the visitors center for the National Maritime Historical Park. The mural is partially incomplete because Johnson and other artist's walked off the job in protest against the city's plans to install a private restaurant in a public building.  

The Federal Arts Project funded two murals to be placed in Newport Harbor High School’s courtyard. These two mosaic murals made of unglazed colored body tile were "crafted from thousands of tiny tiles by Arthur Ames and his then-fiancee Jean Goodwin in 1937" (https://articles.latimes.com/2009/oct/14/local/me-murals14). The mosaics are called Three Women Gathering at the Sea Shore and Three Fisherman. Each piece is nine by seven feet. Both are regional artworks having a focus on maritime themes. These artworks took more than sixteen months to finish - from design to completion. When the original Newport Harbor High School Building was torn down and rebuilt...

This colorful 38' x 22' mosaic, "Recreation in Long Beach," was created under the WPA Federal Art Project (FAP). Produced by a large group of artists—whose tile signatures surround the giant artwork—it was the largest WPA mosaic upon its completion in 1938. The mosaic depicts a variety of recreational activities associated with 1930s Long Beach, including swimming, croquet and horseshoes. Notably, it depicts both men and women at play, with a range of skin tones and dress, including uniforms. The mosaic originally adorned the Municipal Auditorium, which was demolished and replaced by the Terrace Theater. In 1982, the mosaic was relocated to...

The WPA Federal Arts Project funded this petrochrome mural. The date and artist are unknown to us.

In 1937, Stanton Macdonald-Wright (assisted by Albert King) completed a tile mosaic wall panel for a drinking fountain at the old Santa Monica Public Library in Santa Monica, CA. He received funding from the Federal Art Project (FAP). The mosaic panel was presumably lost during the demolition of the old library (located at 503 Santa Monica Boulevard) in 1974. However, Macdonald-Wright painted a mural, “Invention and Imagination" (1935), in the library's reading room that has subsequently been reinstalled at the new Santa Monica Public Library, one block away. Macdonald-Wright was supervisor for the Southern California division of the FAP from 1935 to 1943....

This ceramic panel is at the west entrance of the Rincon Annex.  We have no information on the artist and provenance of this piece.

Ethel Wilson Harris was already the owner of a well-established decorative tile business in San Antonio when she became the local technical supervisor of the Arts and Crafts division of the WPA in San Antonio in 1939. Her staff of approximately 60 local artisans manufactured decorative clay tiles; during the time of the shop’s involvement with the WPA the tiles would not be sold but offered to charitable and public organizations. The tiles from the WPA involvement are seen today in two plaques along the San Antonio River. (One is found under the Navarro Street Bridge on the south loop...

Sisters Helen, Margaret and Esther Bruton created two mosaics for the exterior of the San Francisco Zoo's Mothers Building in 1934. The mosaics depict "Children and Their Animal Friends" and "St. Francis."  

In 1937, Grace Clements adorned a 30-foot curved bench at Santa Monica High School with petrachrome mosaics depicting ocean life. Created under the auspices of the WPA Federal Arts Project (FAP), "Senior Bench" is located in a landscaped area south of the Greek Amphitheater. Clements used the petrachrome method "whereby tinted cement mortar mixed with crushed rock, glass, or tile is applied to the mural surface, with different colored sections delineated by strips of brass. Once hardened, the cement is polished to create a bold, striking appearance. This method was developed by Santa Monica artist Stanton Macdonald-Wright while he was serving...

Artist Stanton Macdonald-Wright designed two murals for Barnum Hall Theater at Santa Monica High School. The works were funded by the Federal Arts Project (FAP). In 1938, Macdonald-Wright completed a mural titled "Entrance of the Gods into Valhalla" upon Barnum Hall's asbestos stage curtain. The following year, he completed an 8x8-foot mosaic titled "Landing of the Vikings in Vinland" in the theater's foyer. Macdonald-Wright was supervisor for the Southern California division of the FAP from 1935 to 1943. He is considered "an important proponent of the nonrepresentational styles of art on the New Deal projects" (Kalfatovic, p. 370). His other New Deal–funded...

This 1936 WPA mosaic is on the outside front of the auditorium.

The mosaic is situated in the entrance to the building (formerly the South Gate Public Library). It has recently been designated a culturally significant landmark. "The tile mosaic entitled Evolution of Writing was created by Stanton MacDonald-Wright during his employ with the Federal Works Progress Administration (WPA). Mr. Wright served as WPA Art Project Director for Southern California and later as technical advisor for seven western states. It was during his position as technical advisor (approximately 1938--1942) that the South Gate mosaic was created. During his affiliation with the WPA (1935--1942), Mr. Wright became interested in new techniques for architectural decoration and...

These two large mosaic panels representing tragedy and comedy were features of the original stage at the High School's Mead Theater. The theater has since been replaced. As of 2008, the mosaics were under restoration, but may since have been reinstalled.

Several different schools are located in this building. This untitled New Deal mosaic by Ilya Bolotowsky is located on the 3rd floor. It was installed in 1936.

Artist Ross Dickinson designed two tile mosaics for Thomas Starr King Middle School in Los Angeles, CA. He received funding from the Federal Arts Project (FAP). The mosaics "give glimpses of Indian pueblo life, one showing the influence of the crafts taught by the mission fathers" (Wells, p. 23). According to a 1937 article in the Los Angeles School Journal, "The greatest single patron of Federal art among the schools of the Los Angeles system is Thomas Start King Junior High School, whose principal is Dr. Alice Ball Struthers. The possessions of that school could well serve as a model and be...

Timberline Lodge was built in 1936-38 as a ski lodge 6,000 feet up on Mount Hood, and it still serves that purpose.  It was equally a showcase for the accomplishments of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The four-story structure was built in Northwestern rustic style using large timbers and local stone, with a striking central "headhouse" built in a hexagon around a 90-foot stone chimney with large fireplaces on all sides. The interior is a marvel of decorative elements designed to feature Northwestern native and pioneer styles in wood carving, furniture, textiles, metal work, light fixtures, stone work and paintings. The interior decor...

Four images "crafted of square tiles square tiles that frame the vestibule beneath the clock tower," collectively titled "Youth Carrying the Heritage of the Past into the Future," are located at Trenton Central High School. NJ.com, 2014: "The mosaics were designed for the school by muralist Monty Lewis. The work was commissioned through the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Art Project and completed in 1941."   Additional Contributor note (January 2019): "The school building closed in 2014 and has been torn down.  The mosaics were removed and stored.  They will be installed in the new Trenton Central High School building that is being errected on the...

The WPA contracted an Italian mosaic setter for this project to teach Albro and other involved artists how to work with marble mosaics. The mosaic was built over the main entrance to Woods Hall. Unfortunately the mosaic appears to have since been removed or covered over, though confirmation is needed.

This mosaic mural "Signs of the Zodiac and Heavenly Bodies" was created by John Stephan in 1936 with the help of WPA Federal Art Project funds.

Artist Stanton Macdonald-Wright designed a series of tile mosaics for University High School (now University High School Charter) in Los Angeles, CA. The work was funded by the Federal Arts Project (FAP). The mosaics would "fill lunettes (arched window spaces which have no windows) and will treat of music, art, and literature " (Wells, p. 24). Macdonald-Wright was supervisor for the Southern California division of the FAP from 1935 to 1943. He is considered "an important proponent of the nonrepresentational styles of art on the New Deal projects" (Kalfatovic, p. 370). Macdonald-Wright's other New Deal–funded works in the region include murals at the...

Helen Bruton completed this 10' by 20' mosaic "Sculpture and Dance" in 1936 for the Works Progress Administration's Federal Art Project. It is located on the east exterior of the old University Art Building.

Florence Alston Swift completed this 10' by 20' mosaic  "Music and Painting" for the Works Progress Administration's Federal Art Project in 1936. It is located on the east exterior of old University Art Building.