Artist
John Steuart Curry
Dunavant, Kansas 1897 — 1946 Madison
Before 1936 when he became the nation’s first artist-in residence at the University of Wisconsin—in the College of Agriculture—Curry already had established his reputation. He had attended the Art Institute of Chicago and even spent a year in Paris. His appointment in Madison was specifically intended to promote American farming. Curry grew up on a farm in an educated home, and his Regionalist scenes carry a message as well as visual appeal. Although he died of a heart attack at forty-eight, he attained considerable recognition and became a full academician at the National Academy of Design in 1942.