William de Leftwich Dodge

William de Leftwich Dodge
Dodge in 1915
Born	(1867-03-08)March 8, 1867 Bedford, Virginia,US
Died	March 25, 1935(1935-03-25)(aged 68) New York City,US
Nationality	American
Occupation(s)	muralist, portraitist, illustrator
Known for	monumental murals
Spouse	Francesca Theodora Bland Pryor ​ ​ (m.1897)​
Children	Roger,Sara

"The Death of Minnehaha"by William de Leftwich Dodge, 1887

William de Leftwich Dodge(March 8, 1867 – March 25, 1935) was anAmericanartist best known for his murals, which were commissioned for both public and private buildings.

Early life and education

Dodge was born atLiberty, Virginiain the Piedmont near Lynchburg. In 1879, his mother, Mary de Leftwich Dodge, an aspiring artist, moved her family to Europe. After living initially inMunichthey moved to Paris, where she worked on art. Dodge later followed her example and became an artist. He spent most of his childhood years in France, where his mother was working on art. He studied at theÉcole des Beaux Artsand took first place in the examinations in 1881. He also studied underJean-Léon Gérômeand withRaphaël Collinat theAcadémie Colarossi,and traveled to Munich for studies there.

Career

Early commissions

Dodge received early commissions that gained him attention in the United States, first at theColumbian Exposition of 1893in Chicago where his mural "Glorification of the Arts and Sciences" adorned the interior dome of the Administration Building.The exposition was held to mark the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World.He was living in Paris when he applied for commissions for mural works for theLibrary of Congress,which he completed in 1895.

New York City

After he and his family settled in New York, Dodge taught at theArt Students League of New Yorkand atCooper Union.

He became known as a muralist when the genre was at a peak of popularity, commissioned for major public buildings as well as hotels and mansions. Murals were seen as a kind of art that could reach directly to the people. Dodge drew on a variety of styles for his murals, settling on a heroic, neoclassical look. Achieving success with commissions for his murals, Dodge designed his family home inSetauket, Long Island,in 1906, the classicalVilla Francesca,named after his wife.

In his private work, Dodge's paintings show the influence ofImpressionismandFauvism.Toward the end of his career, Dodge became interested inMayanart. His work is held in the permanent collections of theMetropolitan Museum of Artand theNational Academy of Design.

Personal life

Dodge's completion of a series of murals for theLibrary of Congressin 1895 enabled him to marry Francesca (Fanny) Theodora Bland Pryor, daughter ofSara Agnes Rice PryorandRoger Atkinson Pryorof Virginia and New York. Her mother was a civic activist and author who published several books in the early 1900s; her father was an attorney and became a justice of the New York State Supreme Court.

Dodge died at his Manhattan home on March 25, 1935. He is buried inWoodlawn Cemeteryin TheBronx,New York City.

Murals

Ceiling mural (one of five panels),Library of Congress,Washington DC, 1895

Segment of Dodge's mosaic in theSurrogate's Courthouse,New York City, c 1905

Dodge with half of his six section 200 foot mural for the Tower of Jewels at thePanama Pacific International Exposition,San Francisco, 1915

Twenty-one panel ceiling in the Governor's Reception Room at theNew York State Capitolin Albany, 1929

Dodge's important murals include:

• Murals for the Administration Building dome, designed byRichard Morris Hunt,at the 1893World's Columbian Expositionin Chicago.
• Murals for the Thomas Jefferson Building,Library of Congress,Washington, D.C.,circa 1895.
• History of Canadamurals for theKing Edward Hotel,Toronto, Ontario, the subject of a landmark artists' rights lawsuit, 1903.
• Murals for the Onondaga County Court House,Syracuse, New York,1904.
• Four lobby murals for theAstor Hotel,depictingAncient and Modern New York,1904.
• Zodiac ceiling mosaic and other work, at theSurrogate's Courthouse(aka Hall of Records), New York City,circa 1905.
• Mural for theAlgonquin Hotel,New York, 1906.
• Works for a number of New York hotels and theaters, including three murals and the color scheme for theFulton Theatre/Helen Hayes Theatre,architectsHerts & Tallant,1911 (razed).
• "Atlantic and Pacific", one of several murals he made for thePanama Pacific International Exposition,San Francisco, 1915.
• Six murals forBuffalo City Hall,Buffalo, New York. Two large murals in the main entrance hall represent the city's role as a border city, while four murals at the end of hallways show the city's work in "Charity," "Protection," "Education," and "Construction." Completed 1931.
• Ceiling murals of battle scenes, Governor's Reception Room,New York State Capitol,Albany, New York.
• Three murals in the Great Reading Room, Seerley Hall at theUniversity of Northern Iowa.The first is calledIn Memoriam,the secondEducation,and the third is a combination of three paintings, calledThe Glory and Grandeur of Iowa.The three sections of the third are known asAgriculture,The Council of Indians,andThe Commonwealth.

Gallery

• 
  Central panel, ceiling of the Governor's Reception Room at theNew York State Capitolin Albany, 1929
• 
  Sunlit Path, 1891
• 
  Victorian Woman in White, 1891
• 
  Mural inLibrary of CongressJefferson building, 1896
• 
  Meditation, 1897
• 
  Last Days of Tenochtitlan (Tulane University -New Orleans, LA) 1899
• 
  Sunken Garden Beneath Wall, Villa Francesca, Setauket, Long Island, 1915
• 
  Buffalo City Hall Mural (Buffalo, New York) 1931
• 
  Buffalo City Hall Mural (Buffalo, New York) 1931
• 
  Mosaic in theSurrogate's Courthouse,New York City
• 
  Detail from the Surrogate's Courthouse mosaic, New York City

References

• This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Gilman, D. C.;Peck, H. T.; Colby, F. M., eds. (1905).New International Encyclopedia(1st ed.). New York: Dodd, Mead.{{cite encyclopedia}}:Missing or empty|title=(help)

External links

• Biography and photograph,Smithsonian American Art Museum site], links to more works
• Dodge paintings at the Library of Congress
• Works by William de Leftwich DodgeatProject Gutenberg