Sunrise, 1964 by John “Jack” Savitsky (1910–1991)
Lansford, Pennsylvania
24 x 48 in. :: Oil on Masonite
American Folk Art Museum, gift of David L. Davies, 2008.4.16
About the Painting
Pennsylvania artist Jack Savitsky’s Sunrise is dominated by a glorious golden sun whose deeply textured and patterned rays occupy three-quarters of the composition. In the balance of the work, Savitsky painted a town much like his own—twenty-six identical dwellings laid out in a row and bounded at each end by a church and a school. In the foreground, a symmetrical band of grass sways toward a central axis, and a ribbonlike procession of figures—old and young men and women, along with children and a few dogs, all in profile—follows a man in a horse-drawn wagon. This painting exemplifies the artist’s mature style—a cartoonlike shorthand of outlined forms in pencil, pen, and paint filled in with clear, unmixed colors—which evolved from an earlier, more naturalistic mode of expression. Savitsky’s terse inscription on the back suggests that narrowness of routine in Lansford: “Sunrise in the coal region. / I went to school. / I went to work. / And on pay day, I went out and got drunk.”
About the Artist
Savitsky was born in Silver Creek (now New Philadelphia), Pennsylvania, to immigrant parents from Russia and Poland who settled in eastern Pennsylvania in the latter part of the nineteenth century. His father worked in the rich anthracite mines, and for Savitsky life was difficult, dirty, and dangerous from an early age; he started work as a slate picker at the age of 12 and joined the miners soon thereafter. After years of labor in the region, he settled in Lansford, where he eventually found work in the No. 9 Coaldale Colliery. He saved enough money to purchase a red brick house, where he lived with his wife, Mae Spack, and their son, John Jr. Over the course of thirty-two years underground, he developed many ailments—black lung and emphysema among them—and when the mine closed in 1969, he retired. While he always had an interest in art, it was only during his retirement that he began to draw and paint, first as recreation and later as a way to make money.
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bellajoya
August 4, 2010 at 12:08 pmOoohhh..I like this one!
Alice
August 4, 2010 at 12:08 pmAt first I thought this painting had minimal color–until I took a closer look.
It makes me think of my childhood–everything in a row – a neat, plain, solid, sameness.
My dad's family were coal miners, a hot, long, dirty job. More died from illnesses contracted while working there than injuries.
Jeannie
August 4, 2010 at 12:46 pmNice choice
Dinni
August 4, 2010 at 5:02 pmI am sorry, I didn't understand. Is sunrise theme af the august challenge?
Rebecca
August 4, 2010 at 5:16 pmWow, this piece is rather interesting. I was studying it before I read the details of the work and artist. The object that could be viewed as a sun has similar characteristics of an ovum. When viewed as an ovum it appears as though it is rejecting fertilization and therefore rejecting new life. But then again, a cigar is sometimes just a cigar. =) Very powerful piece of folk art.
Tari of ClayButtons.com
August 4, 2010 at 5:29 pmYes, Dinni, it is.
Tamis Place
August 4, 2010 at 8:07 pmVery interesting!
Erin Strother
August 5, 2010 at 6:57 pmI already have ideas stirring for this…Hmmmm.
Nickie
August 26, 2010 at 3:48 pmI *just* found this blog through Lori Anderson's blog. So glad I did!
This painting is wonderful, and I wish I had seen this challenge sooner. Can't wait to see the next challenge so I can participate!