Elmer Brown (artist)

Elmer William Brown (1909 – May 30, 1971) was an African-American artist. He worked in multiple mediums, including painting, printmaking, murals, stage design, ceramics, and enameling.[1]

Elmer W. Brown
Born1909 (1909)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Died (aged 61)
Cleveland, Ohio
Resting placeMartha's Vineyard

Biography

Elmer Brown was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and went to school in Columbus, Ohio.[2] He moved to Cleveland, Ohio in 1929, when he was 20, and studied with artist Paul Travis at the Cleveland School of Art.[3][4] Shortly after arriving in Cleveland, he became affiliated with Karamu House, where he became friends with Langston Hughes. He assisted with the production of Hughes's plays at Karamu House,[5] and created artwork for lounges there.[6] He exhibited prints at international exhibitions in New York City and Philadelphia,[5] and displayed works several times in the Cleveland Museum of Art's May Show.[7]

Brown's best-known works are his Works Progress Administration murals. In 1940, he painted two murals known as Cleveland Past and Cleveland Present for the Cleveland Metropolitan Housing Authority's Valleyview Homes project in Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood.[8] When the complex was razed in 2005, the murals were removed and restored by the Intermuseum Conservation Association, and in 2010, were reinstalled in a ballroom at Cleveland State University's student center.[9][10] Reproductions were hung at Tremont Pointe, CMHA's replacement of the Valleyview Homes. In 1942, he created a mural for the City Club of Cleveland titled Freedom of Speech. The 22-foot (6.7 m) by 11-foot (3.4 m) mural, inspired by the work of Diego Rivera and other Mexican muralists, features muscular men and important documents of freedom, including the Magna Carta, the United States Bill of Rights, the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution.[3] It was relocated several times when the City Club moved to new locations, and was restored by a team headed by Gail Berg of Berg and Associates.[11] When the City Club moved to Playhouse Square in 2023, they donated the mural to the Western Reserve Historical Society, where it will be put on display.[12]

Brown became the first African-American illustrator at American Greetings in 1953, and he worked there for 18 years. He also taught at the Cooper School of Art in Cleveland.[2] In 1971, he died at the Cleveland Clinic after a long illness.[5] He was survived by his wife, Anna V. Brown, and was buried in Martha's Vineyard.[2]

See also

References
  1. "Elmer W. Brown, artist, is dead at 61". Cleveland Press. June 1, 1971.
  2. "Elmer W. Brown, American Greetings Artist, Dies". Call and Post. Cleveland, Ohio. June 5, 1971.
  3. "Negro Artist Paints Mural of Freedom for City Club". Cleveland Press. Cleveland, Ohio. April 23, 1942.
  4. "African American Artists in the WPA Collection". Special Collections Research Center, Kelvin Smith Library, Case Western Reserve University. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  5. "Elmer W. Brown Dies; Artist for Firm Here". The Plain Dealer. June 2, 1971.
  6. "Among the Artists and the Exhibitors". The Plain Dealer. November 15, 1942.
  7. "May Show Database: Brown, Elmer W." Cleveland Museum of Art. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  8. Zeltner, Brie (February 18, 2012). "Artist Elmer Brown created murals and greeting cards: Black History Month". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  9. "Present History". Intermuseum Conservation Association. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  10. "Mural Installation of Cleveland Artist Elmer Brown Completed". Intermuseum Conservation Association. October 1, 2010. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  11. "'Freedom of Speech' Mural". City Club of Cleveland. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  12. Litt, Steven (June 8, 2023). "The City Club of Cleveland's move to Playhouse Square heralds higher visibility for historic Cleveland institution". cleveland.com. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
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