John Steuart Curry
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John Steuart Curry (November 14, 1897 - August 29, 1946) was an American painter noted for his pictures depicting life in his home state, Kansas. Along with Thomas Hart Benton and Grant Wood, he was hailed as one of the three great painters of American Regionalism of the first half of the twentieth century. He is well-known for creating both oil paintings and mural cycles, and lesser-known for making World War II propaganda posters and theatrical sets and costume designs.
Many of his works portrayed country scenes in Kansas, and his work Baptism in Kansas was purchased in 1931 by the Whitney Museum in New York City, establishing him as a major artist.
Curry's most famous works were murals designed for the Kansas Statehouse, which were seen as controversial at the time. They were thought by some to show the state in a negative light, portraying fiery abolitionist John Brown as well as other scenes containing religious fanatacism and tornadoes. Curry, angered by this resentment, left the murals unsigned at his death in 1946. Since Curry's death (a heart attack perhaps caused by the stress over the public's reaction to the paintings), the murals have come to be regarded as masterpieces on par with similar works done by Benton in Missouri.
