[Equality]

ca1935. As found.. Very good with one abraded (chipped?), circular, gap (on the necklace of the primary figure) in the painted image that measures appx. 3/16 of an inch in diameter. The gap is on the verso of the screen. The screen mesh is in good condition, i.e., not punctured.. Color lithography [?] on wire screen. The colored surface measures appx. 31 x 24.5 inches. It is stapled on to the plain painted framing boards.

A most unusual representation of New Deal ideals within the genre of Baltimore screen painting. This manner of folk-art is singular to Baltimore and started some time around WWI. The "painting" offered here is actually some form of lithography (we have seen an identical image as part of a set with the same framing) and deviates dramatically from the typical subjects - country scenes or lifeless landscapes - of the genre. The artist is unknown but one assumes must have been a beneficiary of a WPA project somewhere at some time (based on the prominent presence of the American "Federal" eagle on the lower right of the painting). This is one of a series of four whose subjects were "Truth", "Justice", "Liberty" and "Equality" that made up the set. They were most likely meant as wall decoration for a public building (court house?). It is remarkable that the medium of wire mesh screening was used to produce the image - perhaps a Baltimore artist reverting to his/her roots in the WPA program. The result is a graphic "icon" made inexpensively yet more lasting than a depiction on paper and employing more hands in its production.