Untitledc. 1920Frame: 18 x 29 1/2 " (45.7 x 74.9 cm)Charcoal on paperMuseum purchase with funds provided by Will and Mary Evans, Steven S. Powers and Joshua Lowenfels, Jolie and David Altman, Douglas O. Robson, and Augusta and Gill Holland2024.2.10Patient depiction of the sanatorium grounds1578409121Artist unidentifiedDrawingsCopyright for this work is under reviewrecto lower right: 'WWB' RadfordRadfordUnited StatesVirginiaWorks on PaperRecent AcquisitionsAdam ReichRadfordAside from the initials “WWB” contained within a six-sided star in the bottom right corner of this drawing, the identity of the artist is undetermined. It is known that they were a patient at St. Albans Sanatorium, in Radford, Virginia, and it is possible that the landscape portrayed represents the rolling hills in the southwestern part of the state. Against this backdrop, the artist sketched an orderly garden surrounding a building with a dome, castle-like turrets, and an American flag. The materials—charcoal on thin kraft paper —give the piece a weathered texture, with areas of the composition, such as its tear-drop-shaped trees, densely shaded. These are joined by floral plantings and a grid of walkways, with two benches set in the grass facing the viewer as if offering an invitation to stay for a while within the pastoral space. The most fantastic element is on the fence in the foreground. Positioned above its elegant heart scrollwork are busts of six female figures, each with a similar face and serene expression. The word “home” can also be seen in small lettering on the gate. This drawing was created around 1920, just a few years after St. Albans was founded in 1916 as a privately funded hospital to treat “mental and nervous disorders.” Established with ambitions to be a free-ranging institution, offering spaces for recreation, a rooftop garden, orchards, and a small farm on its fifty-six-acre grounds, it declined in its quality of care over the years. By the mid-1940s, it was overcrowded and marked by inhumane and experimental treatments. Although the structure in this drawing does not directly correspond with the buildings at St. Albans, it may have been inspired by the facility’s bucolic beginnings. Allison C. Meier, Valérie Rousseau, and Edward Dioguardi, 2025 Text written as part of “Rethinking Biography,” an initiative supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).Object information is a work in progress and may be updated
with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art
Museum welcomes additional information.
To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.org19151925 2024 2 1 Aside from the initials “WWB” contained within a six-sided star in the bottom right corner of this drawing, the identity of the artist is undetermined. It is known that they were a patient at St. Albans Sanatorium, in Radford, Virginia, and it is possible that the landscape portrayed represents the rolling hills in the southwestern part of the state. Against this backdrop, the artist sketched an orderly garden surrounding a building with a dome, castle-like turrets, and an American flag. The materials—charcoal on thin kraft paper —give the piece a weathered texture, with areas of the composition, such as its tear-drop-shaped trees, densely shaded. These are joined by floral plantings and a grid of walkways, with two benches set in the grass facing the viewer as if offering an invitation to stay for a while within the pastoral space. The most fantastic element is on the fence in the foreground. Positioned above its elegant heart scrollwork are busts of six female figures, each with a similar face and serene expression. The word “home” can also be seen in small lettering on the gate. This drawing was created around 1920, just a few years after St. Albans was founded in 1916 as a privately funded hospital to treat “mental and nervous disorders.” Established with ambitions to be a free-ranging institution, offering spaces for recreation, a rooftop garden, orchards, and a small farm on its fifty-six-acre grounds, it declined in its quality of care over the years. By the mid-1940s, it was overcrowded and marked by inhumane and experimental treatments. Although the structure in this drawing does not directly correspond with the buildings at St. Albans, it may have been inspired by the facility’s bucolic beginnings. Allison C. Meier, Valérie Rousseau, and Edward Dioguardi, 2025 Text written as part of “Rethinking Biography,” an initiative supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).Object information is a work in progress and may be updated
with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art
Museum welcomes additional information.
To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.org