Atlantic and Pacific
ca. 1940
Medium
Pastel on paper
Dimensions
19 1/4 × 24 1/8 in. (48.9 × 61.3 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Modern and Contemporary Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Pennsylvania W. P. A., 1943
Accession Number
43.46.8
Tags
Art Historical Context
Thomas Flavell's "Atlantic and Pacific," created around 1940, exemplifies the public art initiatives of the Works Progress Administration during the late years of the Great Depression. As a pastel drawing on paper gifted to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1943 by the Pennsylvania WPA, the work the museum's Modern and Contemporary Art collection, highlighting how federal programs supported artists and preserved visual records of American life. Its modest dimensions of roughly 19 by 24 inches make it an intimate study suited to the soft, blendable qualities of pastel, a medium prized for its l...
About the Artist
Thomas Flavell · 1906–1975
Thomas Flavell (1906–1975) was born in Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, and developed his artistic talents in the vibrant cultural milieu of Philadelphia. He studied at the prestigious Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA), where he trained under the guidance of Grace Thorp Gemberling, honing his skills in drawing and painting. This rigorous education equipped him with a modernist sensibility, emphasi...