Bucolic
Artist
Fletcher Martin
(1904 - 1979)
Date1938
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions48 x 52 in. (121.9 x 132.1 cm)
ClassificationsPainting
Credit LineThe Hilbert Collection
Object numberMar-2
DescriptionThis work by Fletcher Martin (1904-1979) depicts a man and woman enjoying the pleasures of country life. There's a sense of mystery or perhaps even an allegorical air, too, in the couple's pensive demeanor and in the formalism of the composition.Colorado-born Martin moved to Los Angeles in the 1920s and served as an assistant to the famed Mexican muralist David Alfaro Siqueiros in the 1930s, along with teaching at Otis Art Institute.
Martin created this painting at a high point in his career: his large-scale mural for the San Pedro (CA) post office was widely acclaimed, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York City had just purchased his painting "Trouble in Frisco."
Later, Martin served as an artist-correspondent for Life magazine during World War II. Fourteen of his paintings from the North African campaign were published in the December 27, 1943 issue of “Life,” and brought him national recognition.
As art historian Gordon McClelland notes, "Nearly every art review from the late 1930s lauded (Martin) as a superb draughtsman and singled out his California Scene paintings, which focused on large figurative subjects, as his finest works."
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