Scene on Sand Dunes

Art Historical Context

**Scene on Sand Dunes** by Jennie Lewis captures a poignant slice of American life through the lens of graphic arts printmaking. Created under the Works Progress Administration (WPA), a New Deal program during the Great Depression, this undated work reflects the era's Federal Art Project, which employed artists to document everyday scenes and uplift communities through accessible art. Prints like this one were ideal for mass reproduction, making high-quality imagery available to the public at low cost and fostering a sense of shared national identity. The composition features undulating sand dunes framing a modest house, power lines, and distant town, blending natural landscapes with signs of modern infrastructure. Lewis's technique in this graphic print—likely etching or lithography—emphasizes stark contrasts and fine lines, evoking the vastness of rural America amid economic hardship. Power lines symbolize encroaching progress, a common WPA motif highlighting the tension between tradition and industrialization. Housed in the Smithsonian American Art Museum, transferred from the D.C. Public Library, this piece underscores the WPA's legacy of over 18,000 prints that preserved Depression-era stories. Visitors will appreciate its quiet storytelling, inviting reflection on resilience and change in the American heartland.

About the Artist

Jennie Lewis · 1890–1944

Jennie Lewis (1892–1944) was an American painter and printmaker whose lithographs captured the intimate character of San Francisco’s neighborhoods and waterfronts. Born in San Diego, she moved with her family to San Francisco around 1900. She studied under William Merritt Chase at his Carmel summer school in 1914, then continued her training at the California School of Fine Arts with Eric Spencer ...