Mildred Waltrip

Mildred Waltrip
Born1911 (1911)
Nebo, KY
Died2004(2004-00-00) (aged 92–93)[1]
Tulsa, OK[2]

Mildred Waltrip (1911–2004) was an American artist and illustrator.

Waltrip suffered from polio during her lifetime, and wore leg braces.[3][4] She received her art education at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Works Progress Administration commissioned poster by Mildred Waltrip, c. 1936–1938.

Waltrip took part in the Works Progress Administration's art program, completing the murals World Map and People and American Characters in 1938 at the Hatch Elementary School in Oak Park, Chicago.[5][6][7] In 1995 the murals were removed, as they portrayed Africans stereotypically, "carrying spears, wearing loincloths and sporting prominent red lips," according to a Chicago Tribune article by Joanne von Alroth.[5][6][7] The removed murals were placed in storage.[8]

By the mid 1950s she was illustrating children's books, including Molecules Today and Tomorrow[9] and Research Adventures for Young Scientists.[10]

Books illustrated

  • Your World in Motion: The Story of Energy, 1956[11]
  • The First Book of Submarines, 1957[12]
  • The Adventure Book of Stars, 1958[13]
  • The Science Book of Jets And Rockets, 1961[14]
  • Science Projects for Young People, 1964[15]

Museum collections

Her work is included in the collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum,[1] the Detroit Institute of Arts,[16] the Baltimore Museum of Art,[17] the Art Institute of Chicago,[18] the National Gallery of Art, Washington[19] and the Museum of Modern Art, New York.[20]

References

  1. ^ a b "Mildred Waltrip | Smithsonian American Art Museum". americanart.si.edu.
  2. ^ "Mildred Waltrip – Illinois Women Artists". illinoiswomenartists.org.
  3. ^ Miller, Sarah Bryan (16 March 1995). "Face The Wall". Chicago Reader.
  4. ^ writer, John McDonough, a free-lance (10 December 1995). "ART'S GREAT PAGEANT". chicagotribune.com.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ a b "These Depression-Era Chicago School Murals Sparked Debates About Art And Politics". WBEZ Chicago. 11 August 2019.
  6. ^ a b Pasternak, Judy (2 March 1995). "Murals' racial images confront worldly suburb : Stereotypes featured in school's WPA artworks disturb some Oak Park parents. Specter of censorship upsets others". Los Angeles Times.
  7. ^ a b von Alroth, Joanne (24 February 1995). "OAK PARK SCHOOL TO DROP DISPUTED MURALS IN SPRING". chicagotribune.com.
  8. ^ Gray, Mary Lackritz (April 2001). A Guide to Chicago's Murals. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 9780226305967.
  9. ^ "Mildred Waltrip, Illustrator". Chicago Tribune. 12 May 1963. p. 226.
  10. ^ The Publishers Weekly. F. Leypoldt. 1964.
  11. ^ Thomas, Myra H. (1966). The Education of Disadvantaged Children. Office of Education, U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.
  12. ^ A.L.A. Booklist. The Board. 1957.
  13. ^ Office, Library of Congress Copyright (1959). Catalog of Copyright Entries. Third Series: 1958: July-December. Copyright Office, Library of Congress.
  14. ^ Congress, Library of (1960). Library of Congress Catalog: Books: subjects. J. W. Edwards.
  15. ^ Barr, George; Waltrip, Mildred (1986). "Science projects for young people". New York : Dover Publications.
  16. ^ "Art: Collection Search". www.dia.org.
  17. ^ "The Baltimore Museum of Art". collection.artbma.org.
  18. ^ "Mildred Waltrip". The Art Institute of Chicago. 1911.
  19. ^ "Stop 8". www.nga.gov.
  20. ^ "Mildred Waltrip | MoMA". The Museum of Modern Art.