Section of Painting and Sculpture

E88709

Section of Painting and Sculpture was a New Deal–era U.S. government program that commissioned and oversaw murals and sculptures for public buildings, particularly post offices, to support artists and enrich public spaces.


Statements (46)
Predicate Object
instanceOf New Deal art program
United States federal government program
aimedAt making fine art accessible to the general public
alsoKnownAs Section of Fine Arts of the Public Buildings Administration
Treasury Section
Treasury Section of Painting and Sculpture
artForm mural painting
sculpture
commissionedFor United States Post Office Department buildings
federal courthouses
other federal office buildings
country United States
director Edward Bruce NERFINISHED
dissolved 1943
distinctFrom Works Progress Administration Federal Art Project
era New Deal
focus art for federal courthouses
art for other federal buildings
post office murals
foundedBy Henry Morgenthau Jr.
fundingMethod percent-for-art allocations from federal building construction budgets
headOfGovernmentAgency Edward Bruce NERFINISHED
historicalContext New Deal public works programs
inception 1934
jurisdiction federal government of the United States
legacy large corpus of New Deal–era public art across the United States
locatedIn Washington, D.C.
mainActivity commissioning murals
commissioning sculptures
organizing art competitions for federal buildings
notableFor commissioning thousands of post office murals
promoting American Scene and Regionalist art
operatedBy U.S. Department of the Treasury
oversightOf design and installation of commissioned artworks
parentOrganization U.S. Treasury Department
partOf U.S. Treasury Department
policy emphasis on high artistic standards
use of anonymous competitions for artist selection
purpose commission public murals and sculptures for federal buildings
enrich public spaces with art
support artists during the Great Depression
replacedBy Section of Fine Arts
scope nationwide
selectionMethod national art competitions
regional art competitions
timePeriod Great Depression

Referenced by (3)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
Section of Painting and Sculpture ("Treasury Section of Painting and Sculpture")
alsoKnownAs
Public Works of Art Project
followedBy
Section of Painting and Sculpture ("Section of Fine Arts")
replacedBy

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