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You are here: Home / Archives for John Van Koert

John Van Koert

Post offices that have artwork by the artists John Van Koert

Wisconsin Post Office Mural Artists

October 18, 2017 By David W. Gates Jr.

Artist Frank Buffmire - Black River Falls Post Office Mural
Artist Frank Buffmire – Black River Falls Post Office Mural

A total of twenty-eight artist created murals in thirty-five Wisconsin Post Office buildings during the Great Depression of the 1930s. Seven of the artist received multiple commissions as noted below. The artist and their awarded sites as listed below.

We have found having a list such as this is convenient when performing research at the National Archives Records and Administration. Any researcher will reveal, that finding information is part of the fun, somethings what you are looking for is catalogued by the artist name. Other times the research materials you need may be cataloged by the city or town, and so on.

Having a list to refer to is helpful on your journey of discovering these wonderful treasures in our nations post offices.

Wisconsin Post Office Mural Artists

  1. Berlin – Raymond Redell*
  2. Black River Falls – Frank Buffmire
  3. Chilton – Charles W Thwaites*
  4. Columbus – Arnold Blanch
  5. De Pere – Lester W Bentley
  6. Edgerton – Vladimir Rousseff*
  7. Elkhorn – Tom Rost*
  8. Fond du Lac – Boris Gilbertson*
  9. Hartford– Ethel Spears
  10. Hayward – Stella E Harlos
  11. Hudson – Ruth Grotenrath
  12. Janesville – Boris Gilbertson*
  13. Kaukauna – Vladimir Rousseff*
  14. Kewaunee – Paul Faulkner
  15. Ladysmith – Elsa Jemne
  16. Lake Geneva – George A Dietrich
  17. Lancaster – Tom Rost*
  18. Mayville – Peter Roiter*
  19. Milwaukee – Frances Foy
  20. Neillsville – John Van Koert
  21. Oconomowoc – Edward Morton
  22. Park Falls – James Waltrous
  23. Plymouth – Charles W Thwaites*
  24. Prairie Du Chien – Jefferson E Greer
  25. Reedsburg – Richard Jansen
  26. Rice Lake – Forest Flower*
  27. Richland Center – Richard Brooks
  28. Shawano – Eugene Higgins
  29. Sheboygan – Schomer Lichtner
  30. Stoughton – Edmund D Lewandoski
  31. Sturgeon Bay – Santos Zingle
  32. Viroqua – Forrest Flower*
  33. Waupaca – Raymond Redell*
  34. Wausau – Gerritt Sinclair
  35. West Bend – Peter Roiter*

There are a total of  28 artist that were commissioned artwork in Wisconsin in regards to post offices.

A few of the artists received multiple commissions and have art in more than one building. The following artists have two or more murals in Wisconsin.

  • Raymond Redell – Berlin and Wapaca
  • Charles W Thwaities – Chilton and Plymouth
  • Vladimir Rousseff – Edgerton and Kaukauna
  • Tom Rost – Elkhorn and Lancaster
  • Boris Gilbertson – Fond du Lac and Janesville
  • Forrest Flower – Rice Lake and Viroqua
  • Peter Rotier – Mayville and West Bend

New Deal Artists Biographies NARA
New Deal Artists Biographies NARA
New Deal Artists Biographies NARA

Sources

  • David W. Gates Jr. on site visits to each location.
  • Wisconsin Post Office Mural Guidebook by David W. Gates Jr.
  • Wisconsin Post Office Murals by David W. Gates Jr.
  • National Archives Records and Administration, College Park Maryland
  • Who was who in American Art, 1564-1975: 400 years of artist in America, Peter H Falk; Audrey M Lewis, Georgia Kuchen, Veronika Roessler, Madison, CT, Mount View Press. 1999.
  • Democratic Vistas: Post Offices and Public Art in the New Deal: [Hardcover]  Marlene Park, Gerald E. Markowitz

Filed Under: Artist, Artwork, NARA, New Deal, Post Office, Wisconsin Tagged With: Arnold Blanch, Artist, Boris Gilbertson, Charles W Thwaites, Edmund D Lewandowski, Edward Morton, Elsa Jemne, Ethel Spears, Eugene Higgins, Forrest Flower, Frances Foy, Frank Buffmire, George A Dietrich, Gerrit Sinclair, James Watrous, Jefferson E Greer, John Van Koert, Lester W Bentley, NARA, New Deal, Paul Faulkner, Peter Rotier, Raymond Redell, Richard Brooks, Richard Jansen, Ruth Grotenrath, Santos Zingale, Schomer Lichtner, Stella E Harlos, Tom Rost, Walter Vladimir Rousseff, Wisconsin

Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office

August 31, 2013 By David W. Gates Jr.

Neillsville WI Post Office 54456
Neillsville WI Post Office 54456

ADDRESS: 619 Hewett St. Neillsville, Wisconsin 54456
ARTIS: John Van Koert
TITLE: The choosing of the county seat
MEDIUM: Mural
STATUS: The Neillsville Post Office is still active and the mural is view- able by the public. It resides in the lobby on the wall above the postmaster’s door.
YEAR: 1940

Today we feature the historic Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office. As indicated by the plaque on the front of the building this one has been added to the National Register of Historic Places.

The story goes like this; many years ago I traveled to Costa Rica with some friends. As we were touring around the country I ended up running into some other tourist. The funny thing is that after talking to them for a while, I found out they lived two towns away from where I was living at the time.

Fast forward to summer 2013 and what happens again? I’m living in the Chicago-Land area. I drive to Wisconsin to bring you these great post offices and who do I meet?  Someone that grew up and lived in the same town as I do now? How funny or ironic is that?

Moral of the story, These day you may go weeks, months or years not ever knowing who lives in the same neighborhood as you do. When you travel in search of adventure, I end up meeting people who I may have run past on any day or evening in my own town and not even know it. Funny  how that works.

December 23, 2013 – Update

My apologies to the folks of Neillsville. When I initially created this post I misspelled the name of your city. Recently, I’ve taking the time to re-visit and edit some my articles. I made the correction. Lesson learned. Slow down and check your spelling.

Thanks,

David W. Gates Jr.

Choosing of the County Seat by John Van Koert, photo credit David W. Gates Jr.

Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office 54456
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office 54456
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office 54456
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office 54456
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office 54456 Artifacts
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office 54456 Corner Stone
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office 54456 Historic Plaque
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office Mural Artists Signature
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office Mural Center
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office Mural Detail
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office Mural Detail
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office Mural Detail
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office Mural Detail
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office Mural Full
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office Mural Left Side
Neillsville Wisconsin Post Office Mural Right Side

“Used with the permission of the United States Postal Service®. All rights reserved.”

Sources

  • Personal visit on 6/4/2013 by David W. Gates Jr.
  • Wisconsin Post Office Murals by David W. Gates Jr.
  • Wisconsin Post Office Mural Guidebook by David W. Gates Jr.
  • United States Postal Service
  • (affiliate link) Democratic Vistas: Post Offices and Public Art in the New Deal: [Hardcover]  Marlene Park, Gerald E. Markowitz
  • National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places, Reference Number (00001257).
  • National Archives Records and Administration Identifier Number (106778780).

Filed Under: Artifacts, Artwork, Cornerstone, Historic, New Deal, Post Office, Wisconsin Tagged With: Artifacts, Artwork, Cornerstone, Historic, John Van Koert, Mural, New Deal, Post Office, Wisconsin

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