Houses Along The Delaware River Near Claymont

Item

Type
Painting
Title
Houses Along The Delaware River Near Claymont
Rationale
Depicts how differences in race and wealth overlap (or "intersect") in Delaware, from the perspective of a Black artist.
Description
Painting of three houses by Edward L. Loper Sr., a prominent Black artist from Delaware, depicting a string of three houses along the Delaware River near Claymont. The houses look fancy, like they are owned by upper-class families. But they look to be on the "other side of the tracks" from the artist.

Edward L. Loper, Sr. began working as an artist in the 1930s with the WPA. He initially taught himself to paint through studying at the Wilmington Public Library and regularly visiting the Philadelphia Museum of Art. After the WPA, he was not a full-time artist until 1947, when he left his job at a tanning factory. This painting is dated to the early period in his career as an independent artist, before he developed what is considered his signature style of bright, colorful cubism.
Date
ca. 1948-1950
1940s, 1950s
Place
near Claymont, New Castle County, Delaware
Subject
Delaware River
Claymont, Delaware
African American Art
Black Art
Edward L. Loper, Sr.
Creator
Edward L. Loper, Sr.
Extent
Physical:
Stretcher Height: 25" (63.50 cm); Stretcher Width: 30" (76.20 cm); Frame Height: 31" (78.74 cm); Frame Width: 41" (104.14 cm)
Digital: 400x322 px
Medium
Oil on canvas
Provenance
Dr. Norman Cannon (1913-2000), an amateur artist and former art student of Edward Loper, Sr., purchased this piece in 1977. (Provenance information from Janne Cannon, 2013--in donor file)
Publisher
Artstor, UD Museums: Art-- African American
Rights
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You may find additional information about the copyright status of the Item on the website of the organization that has made the Item available.