- City:
- Torrance, CA
- Site Type:
- Education and Health, Art Works, Schools, Murals
- New Deal Agencies:
- Work Relief Programs, Federal Arts Project (FAP), Works Progress Administration (WPA)
- Started:
- 1936
- Completed:
- 1937
- Artist:
- Anna Katherine Skeele
- Quality of Information:
- Moderate
Description
In 1936-1937, Anna Katharine Skeele painted mural titled “Home Life in Old Taos” which was commissioned by the Federal Arts Project (FAP).
Skeele was a Monrovia, California based artist known for her portraits and focus on Native Americans in the Southwest. “Home in Old Taos” was her first mural painting. She made several trips to Taos, New Mexico to research and develop ideas for the painting.
“Home Life in Old Taos” is 8′ x 30′ and is oil on canvas. It “depicts Pueblo Indian men and women working on daily tasks, such as grinding corn and collecting water from a river near their adobe dwellings in Taos.” (www.wpamurals.org) Once completed, the mural was to be placed in the library at Torrance High School.
In 1974, the mural was damaged during a restoration project on other buildings at Torrance High School. In an effort to preserve the art piece, it was mounted on wood, restored by an art teacher at the school, and moved to its current home in the Auditorium (built by the Public Works Administration) at Torrance High School.
In 2001, the Torrance Historical Society and Museum helped to raise funds to restore the painting once again. A cleaning and restoration project occurred in 2002.
Source notes
"Indian Mural Nearing Completion by Monrovia Painter for Torrance." Monrovia - News Post, 11 Jan. 1937, Page 1. <https://www.newspapers.com/image/606505360/?terms=torrance%20high%20school%20mural&match=1https://www.newspapers.com/image/380274164/?terms=torrance%20civic%20center&match=2>
Fulton, Don. 1983. Torrance High School Alumni Association. National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form.<https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/e9813a42-35f8-4a5d-b972-d8e5328929a7>
Kaur, Kristina. "School District Thanks TTS." Torrance Historian, May 2001. Page 2. <https://www.torrancehistoricalsociety.org/news/newsletters/Ths0105.pdf>
Gnerre, Sam. "Torrance High School Auditorium." The Daily Breeze, 29 Dec. 2011, https://blogs.dailybreeze.com/history/2011/12/29/torrance-high-school-auditorium/
"Artist Profile: Anna Katharine Skeele." Laguna Art Museum, Date accessed 6 Feb. 2024, https://lagunaartmuseum.org/artist/anna-katharine-skeele/
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