WPA Art Inventory Project

Malcolm Hackney was born in 1913. Before he joined the WPA Art Project he was a commercial artist and student at the Yale Art School. While living in New Haven he worked for the WPA from 1938-1939, doing most of his work for the Index of American Design. Hackney died in 1982.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; Social Security Death Index; WPA Federal Arts Project Newsletters, 1938, 1940.

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Malcolm Hackney:

Robert Duane Haley was born in Lambertville, New Jersey on January 6, 1892. In his youth he drew and painted what he saw on the railroad in Connecticut from Fairfield and Stratford which included engines and later Indian heads and profiles. Later he used cameras and paintings with oil. He studied at the Art Studio of NY and did studio work in Boston. In 1940, he worked for the WPA Art Project while living in Stratford, Connecticut. Known as a portrait artist, his repertoire included portrait drawings of Enrico Caruso, the Prince of Wales, Miss America 1959, Cardinal Mercier, members of the Rockefeller and Morgan families, as well as Governors Wilber L. Cross and Abraham Ribicoff. Haley died on June 25, 1959 in Trumbull, Connecticut at the age of 67. 

Source: WPA Artist’s Work Card; Obituary, The New York Times, June 26, 1959; Find a Grave.

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Duane Haley:

Eugene Hannan was born in Washington D.C. on July 26, 1875. At age two and a half he was deafened by scarlet fever. He attended Kendall School for the Deaf and Gallaudet College and later received art training at the Corcoran Art School, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Art Students League in New York. For a time, Hannan worked at the U.S. National Museum in Washington, D.C. and at various other jobs. He belonged to the Association of Connecticut Artists. He worked first for the Public Works of Art Project and then completed ten plaques and one bust for the WPA Federal Arts Project. Two of his most ambitious works were bas reliefs, each 22 feet long, titled The Battle of Compo Hill and The Retreat of the British that were installed in the entrance of Staples High School in Westport, Connecticut. He was described by WPA officials as an “excellent sculptor with a more or less academic approach.” Hannan was married to Helen C.  Price and resided in Westport, donating works of sculpture to the town. He died there in 1945.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; WPA Biography, “Eugene E. Hannan,” in Harry G. Lang and Bonnie Meath-Lang, Deaf Persons in the Arts and Sciences; A Biographical Dictionary (Westport, Connecticut:  Greenwood Press, 1995), pp. 171-173.

Images available in Flickr

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Eugene Hannan:

Merlin Hardy was born on July 9, 1910, in Oakland, California. After graduating from Oakland High School, he studied at the California School of Fine Arts in San Francisco for four and half years. He worked in oil, sculpture, design, and illustration. He had a one-man show at the Art Center in San Francisco and exhibited at a number of institutions in California. Hardy worked for the California Federal Arts Project but left it in 1937, transferring to the Connecticut Federal Arts Project where he was given work for six months. He lived at Wesleyan University and in 1938 completed 20 easel works for the Connecticut Federal Arts Project. They were allocated to Weaver High School in Hartford, Connecticut State Farm for Women, Norwich State Hospital, Fairfield State Hospital, and Cedarcrest Sanatorium. Hardy returned to California in July 1938. After the WPA dissolved he painted murals on ocean liners. He stopped painting professionally after the Second World War and worked for Gump’s Department Store as a designer of decorations on ceramics and fine china. He passed away in San Francisco, California on October 17, 1984.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; WPA Biography; AskART; “Californian Returns,” WPA Federal Arts Project Newsletter, July 1938.

Images available in Flickr

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Merlin Hardy:

Robert Harlow was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on March 20, 1914. He studied at the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts and received his BACHELOR OF FINE ARTS from the University of Pennsylvania in 1938. He was a member of the Fellowship of Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and the Springfield Art League. According to a WPA report, in 1939 Harlow was single and living in the Buckingham Building in Waterbury, Connecticut. He completed 47 works for the WPA Federal Arts Project from 1939-1941. His work was allocated to the Cedarcrest Sanatorium, Laurel Heights Sanatorium, Hamden High School, and Southbury Training School. Harlow may have died in 1991.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; WPA Biography; Who Was Who in American Art (1985), p. 263; Social Security Death Index; AskART.

Images available in Flickr

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from  Robert E. Harlow, Jr.

George Edgerly Harris was born in Delaware in 1898. He was the son of Charles X. Harris, a renowned painter and one of the founding members of the Noank Art Colony. Harris originally wanted to be a baseball player, but his father persuaded him to study art. He studied at the Art Students League in New York and in 1927 attended the National Academy of Design and the Julian Academy in Paris. Harris became a well known portrait painter, finishing portraits of Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, and President Hoover, among other notable figures of the early 20^th century. During World War I he worked as a camouflage artist for the U.S. Navy. He came to live in Connecticut in 1934 and lived in Winchester Center for several years. Harris completed 40 easel works for the WPA Federal Arts Project starting in 1937. In October of 1937 he was struck by an automobile and suffered a broken leg. He was treated at Litchfield Hospital. His leg did not heal correctly, so doctors performed a second surgery in the winter of 1936-37. While at the hospital, Harris continued to paint for the WPA. On June 23, 1938, according to the WPA newsletter, Harris “left his easel where he had been painting and complained of not feeling well.” Within five minutes, he passed away. He married Ruth Coloney, a fellow student at the Art Student’s League, and they had two children.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; WPA Biography; Who Was Who in American Art (1985), p. 264; Fielding’s Dictionary of American Painters (1986), p. 376; Obituary, Hartford Courant, June 25, 1938; WPA Federal Arts Project Newsletter, June 1938. E-mail of Joyce Anne Harris to Mark Jones, January 1, 2011.

Images available in Flickr

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from George Harris:

Ernest H. Hart was born in New York City on October 2, 1910. He attended public schools in New Haven and went on to attend the Art Students League in New York for four years. After completing art school, he went on a motorcycle trip through the United States and Mexico. Hart illustrated books for children and was known for his animal art, having both authored and illustrated over thirty books dealing with the subject by 1930. He belonged to the Association of Connecticut Artists and the Association of American Artists. He worked for the Public Works of Art Project and then the WPA Federal Arts Project The latter described his style as “pure broken brilliant color.” Hart completed 25 easel works and 4 murals for the WPA. They were allocated to the New Haven County Jail, West Haven Firehouse, Troup Jr. High School and the Community Chest in New Haven, the Danbury Normal School, Fairfield High School, Undercliff Sanatorium, Long Lane Farm, Fort Wright, and the Rocky Hill Soldiers’ Home. Hart’s lunettes on various philosophers were installed at the Troup Junior High School Library. Hart passed away in Florida in 1985.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; WPA Biography; Who Was Who in American Art (1985), p. 365; “WPA Federal Arts Project Newsletter”, November 1938; Social Security Death Index.

Images available in Flickr

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Ernest Hart:

Howard Heath was born in Boulder, Colorado on October 2, 1879. He completed three years of high school at Fort Collins, Colorado. He attended Colorado Springs Art School, Denver Art School, Art Institute of Chicago, Art Students League in New York, and took private painting and sketch lessons. Heath worked for the Chicago Tribune and did a number of book illustrations. He was a member of the Silvermine Guild of Artists in New Canaan, Connecticut.

Before joining the WPA Federal Arts Project, Heath worked for the Public Works of Art Project. He began his work for the WPA in November of 1935 and completed 192 easel paintings and two murals. One of his most timely contributions to the project was a series of watercolors on the construction of the Merritt Parkway which was underway at that time. His work was allocated to Westport Town Hall, Washington, D.C., Connecticut School for Boys, Stratford High School, New Britain High School, Colony Street School in Wallingford, Windham County Temporary Home, Stamford Town Hall, Office of Public Works Commissioner in Hartford, Monroe Elementary School, Long Lane Farm, Fairfield State Hospital, Middlesex County Temporary Home, Windham County Temporary Home, Uncas on the Thames, County Commissioner’s Office in Middletown, Manchester Public School, Cedarcrest Sanatorium, Laurel Heights Sanatorium, Whittlesey Avenue School in Wallingford, Central High School in Bridgeport, Horace Hurlbutt School in Weston, Westport Court Room, Fort Wright on Fisher’s Island, NY, and the Nathan Hale School in Moodus. Heath passed away in 1969 in Westport.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; WPA Biography; Fielding’s Dictionary of American Painters (1986), p. 390; Who Was Who in American Art (1985), p. 272; AskART; Social Security Death Index

Images available in Flickr

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Howard Heath:

On July 5, 1895, Magnus Colcord “Rusty” Heurlin was born in Sweden, where his parents were vacationing. The family returned from Sweden in 1896, and he was raised in Wakefield, Massachusetts. He attended art school at the Fenway School of Illustration in Boston. He visited Alaska for the first time in 1916. During World War I Heurlin joined the Navy and served in France. After completing his military service, he moved to Westport, Connecticut where he began a career as a professional illustrator, creating illustrations for a number of magazines. He became a member of the Silvermine Guild of Artists in New Canaan. Heurlin worked for the Public Works of Art Project and then joined the WPA Federal Arts Project, for which he painted two murals, Eskimo Children at Play and Arctic Life, for Bedford Elementary School in Westport. Upon completion of the murals, he returned to Alaska, settling in the town of Ester with his wife. During World War II he enlisted in the Alaska Territorial Guard. When the war was over he retuned to his home in Alaska. In the 1950s Heurlin taught the first art classes held at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He received an honorary doctorate from the University in 1971. Heurlin died on March 10, 1986, at the age of 90.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; AskART; Wikipedia; Social Security Death Index; “WPA Art” [in Westport]; “Heurlin, Rusty Magnus Colcord, 1895-1986,” 

Images available in Flickr

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Magnus Heurlin:

Raymond Holden was born in Wrentham, Massachusetts in 1901. In 1923 he graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design. In 1937, he moved to Sterling where he resided for most of the rest of his life. He was a member of the American Institute of Graphic Artists. Holden provided illustrations for ten books, and he created Christmas card designs for the American Artist Group of New York for forty years. He also painted watercolors of “classic New England scenes” for Hallmark Cards. Holden worked for the WPA Art Project on the Index of American Design contributing 77 color plates between 1936 and 1937. He later donated his drawings and publishing proofs to the Slater Museum in Norwich. He was active in local conservation activities, producing a map of the Farmington Valley in Connecticut and Massachusetts for the Farmington River Watershed Association. In 1968 and 1970 he was a delegate from Sterling to the Northeastern Connecticut Regional Planning Agency and served on its Executive Committee. In 1972 Holden donated a mural depicting historical landmarks in Sterling to the town, which hung it in the new town building. Holden died in 1993 in his beloved Sterling.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; AskART; Social Security Death Index; Who Was Who in American Art (1985), p. 288;Hartford Courant, “Watershed Assn. Will publish Map of River Valley,” November 18, 1960; “Planning Agency to Elect First Full-Term Officers,” February 26, 1968; “Ryan Heads Northeast Plan Group,” March 1, 1970; “Transportation Report Adopted,” March 1, 1972; “Art Exhibition to Open Today,” May 7, 1973; “Artist to Exhibit Oils, Watercolors,” September 7, 1973; “College Awards 37 Degrees,” June 3, 1974.

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Raymond Holden:

Len Howard was born in England in 1891. In London he was an apprentice for six years at James Powell and Sons, one of England’s larger stained glass companies. He also attended St. Martins and the Camberwell Art School in London. In 1913 he moved to America and became a citizen. When war broke out, Howard enlisted in the camouflage corps in the U.S. Army. Upon returning to the U.S., he worked for Gorham Company in New York and attended the Art Students League in New York. He joined the New York Society of Art Craftsmen and served as its president. He moved to Kent, Connecticut in 1922.  Under the WPA Federal Arts Project, Howard completed one stained glass work, American Literature, for New Milford High School. His stained glass work is installed in buildings across the country. He lived with his wife in Kent well into the late 70s. Howard died in August of 1987 in Arkansas.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; WPA Biography; Who Was Who in American Art (1985), p. 295; AskART; Social Security Death Index; Cliff Knight, “Len Howard Creates Windows of Lasting Beauty,” Hartford Courant, May 3, 1953; Lew Golden, “Master Glassman Upholds Tradition,” Hartford Courant, July 2, 1978; “Glass Artisan Honored,” Hartford Courant, April 8, 1979.

Images available in Flickr

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Len Howard:

Stephen Jerome Hoxie was born in Phoenix, Rhode Island on September 24, 1895. He studied at the East Greenwich Academy and then at the Rhode Island School of Design for two and a half years. He did a study of color at the Eastman Kodak Research Laboratory. He completed a total of 82 paintings for the WPA Federal Arts Project, many of them for the Index of American Design. Hoxie’s style of painting was described by WPA officials as “conservative realism.” In 1959 Groton named a highway scenic outlook after him. Hoxie passed away in 1981 in Stonington, Connecticut.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; WPA Biography; Social Security Death Index; Hartford Courant, June 12, 1986.

Images available in Flickr

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Stephen Hoxie:

Arthur Gibson Hull was born in Pennsylvania in 1881 to parents who were Presbyterian missionaries. He spent the first 12 years of his life in India and then spent many years moving from state to state in the United States. He first studied at the School of Fine Arts in Colorado Springs and later took courses at the Art Students League in New York and Wooster College in Massachusetts. Hull spent several years as a commercial illustrator and joined the art staff of the Rocky Mountain News in Denver, Colorado. Prior to joining the WPA Federal Arts Project, he worked on the Public Works of Art Project. He began his work for the WPA in November, 1935 and created seven murals and four easel works. The mural panels covered the subjects of Colonial industry, Indian Life, Landscape, Age of Chivalry, and Marco Polo. Hull’s works were allocated to Darien High School, Horace Hurlbutt School in Weston, Norwalk High School, Nichols School in Trumbull, and the Nathan Hale School in New Britain. He passed away in 1941.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; WPA Biography; Obituary, New York Times, November 13, 1941; Who Was Who in American Art (1985), p. 299.

Images available in Flickr

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Arthur Hull:

David Humphrey was born in 1872 on a farm in Elkhorn, Wisconsin, where he lived for 23 years. His mother died when he was less than a year old, and he was raised by his grandparents. He attended high school in Elkhorn. He studied at the Art institute of Chicago and in Paris at Colarosorri’s, Julian’s, and at the Academy Carmine under Whistler. Humphrey worked for a decade as a commercial artist in Chicago and New York City. His landscapes were exhibited at the National Academy of Design and the Art Institute of Chicago. He had one man shows of his prints in New York, Chicago, Cleveland, and Boston. He began spending his summers with a group of artists in Darien, Connecticut in 1905 and moved to Darien in 1920. He was a member of the Silvermine Guild of Artists in New Canaan. Humphrey first worked for the Public Works of Art Project and then, under the WPA Federal Arts Project, completed 20 easel works and three murals. He became famous for his monotypes and did nine for the WPA. His works were allocated to Hamden High School, State Normal School in New Haven, Cove School in Stamford, Brookfield Consolidated School in Brookfield, Long Lane Farm, Cedarcrest Sanatorium, Nathan Hale School in New Britain, and Colony Street School in Wallingford. He taught at Stamford High School. Humphrey died on June 12, 1950.

Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; WPA Biography; Obituary,Stamford Advocate, June 12, 1950; Obituary, New York Times, June 12, 1950; AskART; WPA Federal Arts Project Newsletter, November 1938.

Images available in Flickr

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from David Humphrey:

Little is known about Frank Hunter except that he painted an oil mural for the WPA from February to May in 1936, and that it was hung in the Myrtle Beach Fire House in Milford, Connecticut.

Source: WPA Artist’s Work Card.

Works of Art Listed in CT Archives’ database from Frank Hunter: