William de Leftwich Dodge
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist best known for his murals.
Dodge was born at Liberty, Virginia
Bedford County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 60,371 people, 23,838 households, and 18,164 families residing in the county. The population density was 80 people per square mile . There were 26,841 housing units at an average density of 36 per square mile...
. He took first place in the examinations for the École des Beaux Arts in Paris in 1881, and also studied under Jean-Léon Gérôme
Jean-Léon Gérôme
Jean-Léon Gérôme was a French painter and sculptor in the style now known as Academicism. The range of his oeuvre included historical painting, Greek mythology, Orientalism, portraits and other subjects, bringing the Academic painting tradition to an artistic climax.-Life:Jean-Léon Gérôme was born...
and at the Académie Colarossi
Académie Colarossi
The Académie Colarossi is an art school founded by the Italian sculptor Filippo Colarossi. First located on the Île de la Cité, it moved in the 1870s to 10 rue de la Grande-Chaumière in the VIe arrondissement of Paris, France....
. He also studied in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
.
Returning to the U.S. in 1889, he taught at the Art Students League of New York
Art Students League of New York
The Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...
and at Cooper Union
Cooper Union
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, commonly referred to simply as Cooper Union, is a privately funded college in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States, located at Cooper Square and Astor Place...
. In 1906 he designed the classical Villa Francesca at Setauket, Long Island
Setauket-East Setauket, New York
Setauket-East Setauket is a census-designated place in Suffolk County, New York on the North Shore of Long Island along the "Gold Coast." As of the United States 2000 Census, the CDP population was 15,931. It is one of the most affluent communities in the state and is among the wealthiest towns...
for himself. Towards the end of his career he became interested in Mayan art. His work is in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
, the National Academy of Design
National Academy of Design
The National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, founded in New York City as the National Academy of Design – known simply as the "National Academy" – is an honorary association of American artists founded in 1825 by Samuel F. B. Morse, Asher B. Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E...
.
Mural Work
Dodge's important mural work includes:- murals for the Richard Morris HuntRichard Morris HuntRichard Morris Hunt was an American architect of the nineteenth century and a preeminent figure in the history of American architecture...
's Administration Building dome at the 1893 World's Columbian ExpositionWorld's Columbian ExpositionThe World's Columbian Exposition was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. Chicago bested New York City; Washington, D.C.; and St...
in Chicago, 1893 - murals for the Thomas Jefferson Building, Library of CongressLibrary of CongressThe Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
, Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, circa 1895 - History of Canada murals for the King Edward Hotel, Toronto, Ontario, the subject of a landmark artists' rights lawsuit, 1903
- murals for the Onondaga County Court House, Syracuse, New YorkSyracuse, New YorkSyracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
, 1904 - four lobby murals for the Astor HotelAstor HotelThe Hotel Astor was a hotel located in the Times Square area of Manhattan, in operation from 1904 through 1967. The former site of the hotel, the block bounded by Broadway, Astor Plaza, West 44th Street, and West 45th Street, is now occupied by the high-rise 54-story office tower One Astor Plaza.-...
depicting Ancient and Modern New York, 1904 - zodiac ceiling mosaic and other work, at the Surrogate's CourthouseSurrogate's CourthouseThe Surrogate's Courthouse, also known as the Hall of Records, is a Beaux Arts municipal building in lower Manhattan in New York City....
(aka Hall of Records), New York City, circa 1905 - mural for the Algonquin HotelAlgonquin HotelThe Algonquin Hotel is a historic hotel located at 59 West 44th Street in Manhattan . The hotel has been designated as a New York City Historic Landmark....
, 1906 - a number of New York hotels and theaters, including three murals and the color scheme for the Fulton Theatre/Helen Hayes TheatreFulton Theatre/Helen Hayes TheatreThe Fulton Theatre was a Broadway Theatre located at 210 West 46th Street in New York that was opened in 1911. It was re-named the Helen Hayes Theatre in 1955. The theatre was demolished in 1982...
, architects Herts & Tallant, 1911 (razed) - murals for the Panama Pacific International ExpositionPanama-California Exposition (1915)The Panama-California Exposition was an exposition held in San Diego, California between March 9, 1915 and January 1, 1917. The exposition celebrated the opening of the Panama Canal, and was meant to tout San Diego as the first U.S. port of call for ships traveling north after passing westward...
, San Francisco, 1915 - six murals for Buffalo City HallBuffalo City HallBuffalo City Hall is the seat for municipal government in the City of Buffalo, New York State. Located at 65 Niagara Square, the 32 story Art Deco building was completed in 1931 by Dietel, Wade & Jones....
, Buffalo, New York. Two large murals in the main entrance hall represent the city's role as a border city, while four murals at the end of hallways represent the city government's services as "Charity," "Protection," "Education," and "Construction." Completed 1931 - ceiling murals of battle scenes, Governor's Reception Room, New York State CapitolNew York State CapitolThe New York State Capitol is the capitol building of the U.S. state of New York. Housing the New York State Legislature, it is located in the state capital city Albany, on State Street in Capitol Park. The building, completed in 1899 at a cost of $25 million , was the most expensive government...
, Albany, New YorkAlbany, New YorkAlbany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River... - three murals in the Great Reading Room, Seerley Hall at the University of Northern Iowa. The first is called In Memoriam, the second Education, and the third is a combination of three paintings called The Glory and Grandeur of lowa. The three sections of the third are known as Agriculture, The Council of Indians, and The Commonwealth.