Murals Sites

"The WPA would make another addition to the Samuel J. Tilden High School, this time in the form of a mural for the auditorium. The project took nearly two years to complete, as muralist Abraham Lishinsky, working with his colleague Irving A. Block, designed and painted a 2,400-square-foot mural depicting “Major Influences in Civilization” for the auditorium. Among the six assistants they employed over time was the artist Abram "Al" Lerner."

The three panels of this oil-on-canvas mural "Mormon Saw Mill" were painted by Rex Brandt with FAP funds.

These three murals in the San Diego County Administration Center were produced under the WPA by Jean Goodwin and Arthur Ames (who later married). Each mural stands about 18' high and is painted in egg tempera on muslin over a gesso surface. Each panel represents an aspect of life in San Diego County: Recreation, Agriculture, and Conservation. The murals hang in the Board Chamber to this day. Three smaller studies done in preparation for these murals also remain in the building. They can be found in Room 402a. The artists were assisted in their work by Alloys Bohner, William McAulby, Hazel Scheckler.

In 1938, artist Belle Baranceanu painted two large murals "Building Padre Dam" and "Portola's Departure" on the sides of the stage at Roosevelt Junior High (now Roosevelt Middle School) in San Diego for the WPA Curriculum Project. The San Diego Historical Society notes: "For Roosevelt Junior High she was asked to use the theme of the "Four Cornerstones of American Democracy" for which she prepared some working drawings. Finding the concept terribly dull, she switched to historical subjects: Building Padre Dam and Portola's Departure (1937-38)." The school was remodeled in the 1970s, but "the Roosevelt Junior High murals were done on canvas...

These two 10' x 20' murals "San Diego Harbor" and "San Diego Back Country" by Charles Reiffel were originally installed in the Russ Auditorium at San Diego High School. They were painted in 1936 under the auspices of the WPA Federal Art Project.

This photo montage mural by Benjamin Cunningham hangs in the City Treasurer's Office. It was funded by the WPA's Federal Art Project in 1938.

Murals by Dorothy Pucinelli and Helen Forbes adorn the interior of the Mothers Building at the SF Zoo which was originally built in 1925 as a refuge for mothers and their children. Pucinelli and Forbes used egg tempera to paint a four panel mural illustrating "Noah and his Ark-the Waters Subsiding and Renewal." The murals were painted in 1938 with Federal Art Project funds. From 1978 to 2002, the building served as the Zoo's gift shop, however the murals are currently deteriorating and, pending more funds for restoration, the building is only used for occasional events.

This 8 x 17 foot mural of the West Marin landscape was restored during 2003-2005 and is now protected by a glass case.    

This series of nine oil-on-canvas murals, collectively titled "Industrial Life in San Pedro," by Federal Art Project (FAP) artist Tyrone Comfort is located in the library at San Pedro High School in San Pedro, CA. Completed in 1937, the nine murals are "Hauling the Cargo," "Fisherman in Port," "The Riveters," "Refinery Maintenance," "Opening the Valves," "The Propeller Crew," "Loading the Harvest," "Construction Workers," and "The Drillers." They were restored and preserved by the Los Angeles Unified School District Historic Schools Investment Fund in 2008. Comfort's other FAP works in the region include two murals, "Printing" and "Science and Industry" (1936), at John...

In 1937, Ross Dickinson completed a four-panel mural at San Pedro High School in San Pedro, CA. He received funding from the Federal Art Project (FAP). Dickinson's other New Deal works—all in Los Angeles, CA—include two murals, “A Valley in California” and “Mankind’s Achievements" (1934), at George Washington Preparatory High School; a pair of tile mosaics (1936) at Thomas Starr King Middle School; and a mural, “History of the Recorded Word” (1937), at Thomas Jefferson High School. Also located at San Pedro High School is a series of murals by FAP artist Tyrone Comfort. Titled "Industrial Life in San Pedro," these murals...

Campbell Grant was hired by the WPA in 1934 to paint two murals for Santa Barbara High School: "North America" and "South America." The murals went up in the administrative lobby and have recently been restored. Campbell Grant was the brother of Gordon K. Grant, another active New Deal artist.

Douglass Parshall was both an artist and a Works Progress Administration (WPA) supervisor. In 1934, he painted a mural for Santa Barbara Junior High School that depicts Olympic sports – no doubt based on his experience at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympic Games.  The mural is located in the school library. It is uncertain who funded the mural, but it was likely the Civil Works Administration (CWA), the predecessor of the WPA. Restoration work was done on the mural in 2011, paid for by the Pearl Chase Society of Santa Barbara.

Two 25' x 8' oil on canvas lunettes by Samuel Vaughan were commissioned by the Federal Art Project: "Men at Work" and "US Army in Europe"

Four oil on canvas murals depicting Santa Cruz's industry: "Cabbage Farming," "Limestone Quarries," "Artichoke," and "Fishing." "The vivid paintings show limestone quarry workers, men picking artichokes and fishermen at the waters edge. One painting, titled Cabbage Culture, shows three farm workers, one of them bent over as if the weight of the world was on his shoulders."

Originally painted for Santa Monica High School's library in 1935—likely under the auspices of the WPA Federal Art Project (FAP)—Conrad Buff's mural "Westward II" was being stored in Barnum Hall as of 2018.

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...

The petrachrome murals "Santa Paula" and "Youth" were created by Buckley MacGurrin with WPA Federal Art Project (FAP) funds for Santa Paula High School in Santa Paula, CA. MacGurrin also painted a pair of FAP murals for the former Hall of Records in Los Angeles, CA, which was demolished in 1971. The status of these murals is unknown.

Lyla Harcoff painted these three oil on canvas lunettes for the school's library and study hall in 1936. The murals depict a Native American theme, a Spanish American theme, and a white American agricultural theme respectively.

"In addition to the public-works projects, Santa Fe also had more than its share of New Deal-financed art and craft projects designed to train young men and women in traditional skills while producing works of art for public buildings. Perhaps the best known of the New Deal art in Santa Fe are the six murals landscapes on canvas affixed to the walls by William Penhallow Henderson in the U.S. District Court building on Federal Place. The old courthouse, built between 1853 and 1889, recently got three more New Deal artworks scenes of Navajo life painted by Warren Rollins for a...

Mural painted by Elizabeth Tracy, later known as Tracy Montminy, depicting the arrival of the first white settlers of Saugus. Originally installed in the since demolished police station on Taylor Street, it is now in the auditorium of the 1874 Town Hall.

The fresco murals at the Sawyer Free Library, "Scenes of the Region", by Frederick Stoddard and Howard Curtis were painted with the help of New Deal funds. They are located in the east entryway stairwell and 2nd floor reference room.

The five panels of this mural depicting the "History of Chicago" are titled: "Father Marquette," "Fort Dearborn," "Great Chicago Fire of 1871," "World's Columbian Exposition of 1893," and "Century of Progress World's Fair of 1933." They were painted by Lucile Ward in 1940 with funds from the WPA Federal Art Project. It was restored in 1997.  

Aaron Douglas completed this four-panel mural, entitled Aspects of Negro Life, in 1934 through the Public Works of Art Project (PWAP). At the time, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture was the 135th Street branch of The New York Public Library.   A leading artist of the Harlem Renaissance, Douglas painted these murals to reflect African and African American history, the African American present, and his vision of a promising future. According to the Treasures of The New York Public Library website, "Among his best-known works, the four panels of Aspects of Negro Life are characteristic of Douglas's style, with graphically incisive...

Malvin Gary Johnson painted two murals, "Nat Turner" and "Toussaint L'Ouverture" in 1934 with funds provided by the Public Works of Art Project (PWAP).

A 1940 WPA report on the activities of Professional and Service Projects in Maine mentioned the completion of a mural for the former Cape Elizabeth High School. Dorothy Higgins of the Cape Elizabeth Historical Preservation Society Cape happened to locate a picture of it in the 1941 High School year book. "The high school has been remodeled several times and no one at the Cape Elizabeth Historical Preservation Society knows what happened to this mural." It depicts a map of the town flanked by small illustrations of historical buildings.

George Melville Smith painted two 9' x 9' murals for the Schubert School: "The Life of Franz Schubert" and "The Hurricane." They were painted in 1938 with WPA Federal Art Project funds.

"Two Works Progress Administration (WPA)-era murals from the 1930s, long thought to have been destroyed during subsequent building renovations, were uncovered in San Diego State Universitys (SDSU) Hardy Memorial Tower in August of 2004. Local student artists Genevieve Burgeson Bredo and George Sorenson completed these murals in 1936 at the entrance and in the hallway of the old library at SDSU, known at the time as San Diego State College. Although portions of the murals were obliterated during construction from 1957-59, some of the artwork remained intact. Non-destructive tile maintenance during the summer of 2004 exposed the murals, which have...

This 1914 building used to be the Sherman Public Library and now houses a museum that "acquires, preserves, interprets and displays items" of local significance. "The Carnegie boasts of three oil on wood paintings, by Texas artist James Swann, that were hung in the building in 1934. They are the only examples of WPA art in Grayson County."   (www.theshermanmuseum.org) The paintings are titled "Music," "Literature," and "Painting." The three paintings are each 3' X 7' oil paintings on pressed wood. The background is gold leaf. The Greek figures were chosen as a representation of Sherman being labeled as the "Athens of Texas" around...

Wendell Jones painted this Section of Fine Arts oil on canvas mural, "Farmer Family" for the Johnson City post office in 1940. "Farmer Family" was moved from the old post office when a new one was built and now hangs in the Sherrod Library on the East Tennessee State University campus. The figure below the cow's tail is a self-portrait of the artist. The Red Setter was Jones's dog and the Irish Setter belonged to friend George Ludin, another prominent artists.  

This mural "Local Industries" by Natalie Henry was completed with support from the Treasury Section of Fine Arts in 1940. It was originally in the Springville Post Office, but it is now on display at the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History. From the University of Central Arkansas: "Natalie Henry was commissioned to create a mural for Springdale, Arkansas as a result of an Honorable Mention in a Section of Fine Arts competition. She visited town and observed that most farms within the area had vineyards and orchards and that the houses were quite well maintained. She used her father, brother, and...

"The Shuler lobby is the permanent home to eight WPA murals dating to 1933-34 by artist Manville Chapman. The murals show scenes depicting the history of Raton and the surrounding area from early settlements in the 1840s through the era when the Shuler was built into the 1920s. The WPA murals are in outstanding condition and are maintained by a grant from the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs. The Titles: #1 Cheyenne Village - 1845 AD #2 Wooten Toll Gate - 1868 AD #3 Willow Springs Ranch - 1870 AD #4 Clifton Station - 1875 AD #5 Maxwell's Mansion 1865 AD #6 Elizabethtown - 1883 AD #7...

This 1938 Section of Fine Arts oil-on-canvas mural "Local Pursuits" by Ambrose Patterson was painted for the then Mount Vernon post office. The building (and mural) are now part of Skagit Valley College's Business Resource Center. “Born in Australia, Patterson studied in Europe before moving to the United States. In 1919, he sounded the School of Painting and Design at the University of Washington. The mural “Local Pursuits” highlights Skagit County’s agricultural industries, including dairy.” (depts.washington.edu)  

The mural was painted in 1934 by Raymond Breinin, an artist hired by the Public Works Art Project. Soon after its completion, the mural became the subject of a political controversy and the school board voted to cover it.  The remnants of the mural are located at the Skokie School Learning Center. The original artwork was 40 foot-wide by 10 foot-tall.

Dacre F. Boulton painted two oil-on-canvas murals, "Industrial" and "Winter," for the U.S. Department of Labor in 1933-1934 with funds provided by the Public Works of Art Project of the Treasury Department (PWAP).  The Smithsonian American Art Museum received this and other artworks in the 1960s when they were transferred from federal offices that had previously displayed them.  The Boulton murals are not on display.

Lily Furedi's oil-on-canvas mural, "Subway," was painted in 1934 under the auspices of the Public Works of Art Project – a relief program to hire unemployed artists. The Smithsonian American Art Museum received Subway and other surviving artworks in the 1960s when they were transferred from the agencies that had previously displayed them. Furedi's painting was transferred from the National Park Service, U. S. Department of the Interior, though it is not known where it was originally hung.

Harry W. Scheuch completed two murals for the PWAP titled "Workers on the Cathedral of Learning" and "Finishing the Cathedral of Learning" that were transferred from U.S. Department of Labor to the Smithsonian American Art Museum. According to the Smithsonian: "Artist Harry Scheuch painted the Cathedral of Learning twice for the PWAP. The first image is a close-up view of the masons at work(1964.1.157), while this second painting (1964.1.42) is a more distant view that reveals the horde of workers involved. Together the two paintings tell the story of this mighty undertaking. The forty-two-story structure was not substantially completed until 1937,...

"Bulloch Hall" by Frances Lee Turner was painted in 1934 under the auspices of either the Civil Works Administration (CWA) or the Public Works of Art Project (PWAP), which gave work to unemployed artists in the early years of the New Deal. The painting traveled from Roswell GA to Washington DC to be hung in the White House. It was transferred to the Smithsonian in 1965. The painting, like hundreds of other New Deal artworks in the American Art Museum,  is not presently on display.  

This mural "Lumbering, Agriculture and Mining" was moved from the original location to the new Sonora High School Library in 1976: "Acclaimed watercolor artist George Post was hired by the in 1936. His first assignment was a mural to be painted for Sonora High School depicting industries in Tuolumne County, which included lumber, mining and agriculture. Post created the only oil painting of his career, a mural eight feet high by 36 feet long, which is still in the Sonora High library today. The work took him a month and a half to complete, Post said in a 1964 interview with the...

Ethel Magafan painted this mural, entitled "The Horse Corral," in 1942 for the Treasury Section of Fine Arts.

These tempera murals depicting the "History of Printing Through the Ages" were created by Suzanne Miller with FAP funds. There were originally five panels in this series; two have been destroyed, but the murals depicting the history of printing in China, Egypt, and "Modern" times remain.