Kindred McLeary
Encyclopedia
Kindred McLeary was an American architect
, artist
and educator.
He studied architecture at the University of Texas and earned his degree in 1927. While teaching at the University of Texas the following year, McLeary entered one of his paintings, Cotton, in a national art exhibit at the Witte Memorial Museum
in San Antonio
. The painting portrayed an African-American woman reclining in a field of cotton with several men standing around her, one of them strumming a guitar. Some artists and ministers attacked the picture as obscene, but the art curator of the museum defended it and kept it hanging throughout the exhibit, despite the controversy (Univ. of Texas Biographical Handbook).
Later that year McLeary began teaching architecture at Carnegie Tech, where he remained until his untimely death, aged 48, following a fall from the roof of his studio near Confluence, Somerset County, Pennsylvania
.
McLeary was also a noted muralist. His best-known mural, America the Mighty (1941; also known as Defense of Human Freedoms), is a depiction of scenes of war. McLeary also painted murals in, among other places, his adopted home of Pittsburgh, at the Somerset County, Pennsylvania
library, and as far away as New York City
(at the Madison Avenue Post Office).
Several large murals by McLeary from 1935, funded by the Works Project Administration, survive in good shape in the US Post Office-South Norwalk Main, but were hidden from public view in 1986 when that building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
, artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
and educator.
He studied architecture at the University of Texas and earned his degree in 1927. While teaching at the University of Texas the following year, McLeary entered one of his paintings, Cotton, in a national art exhibit at the Witte Memorial Museum
Witte Museum
The Witte Museum, established in 1926 under the charter of the San Antonio Museum Association, is located adjacent to Brackenridge Park in San Antonio, Texas, on the banks of the source of the San Antonio River. It is dedicated to the history, science, and culture of the region. Nearby is the San...
in San Antonio
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
. The painting portrayed an African-American woman reclining in a field of cotton with several men standing around her, one of them strumming a guitar. Some artists and ministers attacked the picture as obscene, but the art curator of the museum defended it and kept it hanging throughout the exhibit, despite the controversy (Univ. of Texas Biographical Handbook).
Later that year McLeary began teaching architecture at Carnegie Tech, where he remained until his untimely death, aged 48, following a fall from the roof of his studio near Confluence, Somerset County, Pennsylvania
Confluence, Pennsylvania
Confluence is a borough in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 834 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Confluence is located at ....
.
McLeary was also a noted muralist. His best-known mural, America the Mighty (1941; also known as Defense of Human Freedoms), is a depiction of scenes of war. McLeary also painted murals in, among other places, his adopted home of Pittsburgh, at the Somerset County, Pennsylvania
Somerset County, Pennsylvania
Somerset County is a county located in the state of Pennsylvania. As of 2010, the population was 77,742. Somerset County was created on April 17, 1795, from part of Bedford County and named for Somerset, United Kingdom. Its county seat is Somerset. It is part of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania,...
library, and as far away as New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
(at the Madison Avenue Post Office).
Several large murals by McLeary from 1935, funded by the Works Project Administration, survive in good shape in the US Post Office-South Norwalk Main, but were hidden from public view in 1986 when that building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
Sources
- McMahan, Truman. School and Society, June 18, 1949
- Washington Post, March 28, 1971
- Washington Post, April 27, 1977