RSW's Diary Comments

Unnamed: Goodnow Pasture
RSW painted a number of canvases of the Goodnow
pasture which is to the left of the farm in the painting
above. For perspective, the painting is looking south
so the left is east towards Ashfield Road (Rt. 112)

"Painted in 1933. Purinton Farm (now Leon Goodnow's) painted from back of old Strohecker House, (now Mr. Wise.) Largely exhibited as one of my outstanding canvases. Awarded 2nd Landscape Prize, at Albany Inst. of History and Fine Arts, 1937. Finally bought by Bartlett Arkell (owner of Beechnut Products) 15 West 10th Street New York City, for the Canajoharie N.Y. Museum, but I believe hung instead in his N. Y. business office."

Editor's Note:

It is clear this is one of Woodward's outstanding paintings and yet like When Drifts Melt Fast seems to get overlooked. Unlike When Drifts Melt Fast, which Woodward kept for himself because he could

The 1938 Exhibit Poster
from the AIHA Wikipedia page.
See more below...

not find the right home. This painting landed in the Arkell Museum in Cana-joharie NY. We like that Arkell, who became a friend as well as a supporter, kept it for himself. Hanging it in his office in New York City is as big a deal. Imagine who got to see it?

The Albany Institute of History and Art (AIHA) is one of the oldest museums in the country. It was establish in 1791, and has grown and evolved through a number of iterations and mergers with other institutions and organizations to what it is today. This exhibition, the second of its kind was part of a national program to support artist who qualified for the The WPA Federal Art Project for which we have newspaper clippings that Woodward had been awarded such a project, however, we have no idea what or if he actually did the work. The most well known outcome of the Federal Art Project was the murals that decorated many local post offices, courthouses, and state buildings.

Albany Times Union, Apr. 3, 1937

Boston Evening Transcript, Sept. 2, 1933

"...Robert Strong Woodward again shows the great understanding he has of the structure, one might almost call it the anatomy, of a landscape in his June Corn."

Boston Herald, Oct. 1, 1933

" .....Robert Strong Woodward deals with a difficult problem in his rows of June Corn, and produces an attractive, sunny composition."

The clipping from the Albany Times Union (to the left) announces only the award winners of the 1937 show. It is npt a review. Nonetheless, we can't help but notice Woodward is the only non-local participant listed. All of the others are from the Hudson Valley area. A quick visit to the AIHA website makes pretty clear the museum is regional and promotes the local area. Was an exception made for Woodward? Did he qualify to show at the AIHA because of his years in Schenectady, NY (1900-1903) , where he graduated from the Union Classical Institute? Did Arkell or even the Director of the Syracuse Museum of Fine Art, Anna Olmsted give their endorsement? Was it perhaps, Woodward association with Pittsfield or the Southern Vermont Artist Assoc. that brought him to Albany? Let's not also forget that after Woodward's Redgate fire, the artist worked his way back to respectability by doing small shows in Utica and Troy (1929). We suppose any of or all of those reasons contributed.

First prize went to well known New York artist Henry Billings. Billings is accomplished. He is known for several things as a muralist, sculptor, and teacher. He painted several post office murals, as well as a mural of a panther in the Radio City Music Hall in NYC that still exist to this day.

"In 1936 Robert Strong Woodward incidentally discovered an image of this painting on the cover of Farm Journal which greatly disturbed him. The following letter was fired off to the Grand Central Art Gallery:"

pg 1

pg 2

pg 3

pg 4