Grant Wood, Iowa, and the 18th Biennial Conference on Chemical Education

Explanation of the 18th BCCE Logo

        

Grant Wood's American Gothic, painted in 1930, certainly evokes a strong reaction from individuals even today. The original painting hangs in The Art Institute of Chicago. When the painting first became known to the public, many had an adverse reaction - they thought it made fun of Iowa farmers. Some thought it represented a "morose, grim religious fanatic" couple.

However, then and now, most art critics and most people view American Gothic as showing strong, stoic, hard working Iowans. Through the years, the painting has come to symbolize more than just farmers, it has come to symbolize a strong spirit in Americans. It does symbolize the strength in a man and a woman. Even though Grant Wood's intention was that the painting show a farmer and his daughter, most people view it as a farmer and his wife. The female model is his sister, Nan, and the male model is, Dr. B. H. McKeeby, Grant Wood’s dentist.

Grant Wood did most of his artistic work in Iowa. He was an artist in residence at Iowa State University. Some of his original paintings and murals are at Iowa State University.

Several other Grant Wood paintings are famous, yet many do not know he was the painter. Parson Weem's Fable was a standard picture in American History school textbooks.

      

Iowa’s Grant Wood museum is in Anamosa, Jones County, Iowa – Grant Wood’s birthplace. Each summer, Anamosa holds a Grant Wood art festival.

Only the Mona Lisa has been the subject of more parodies than American Gothic.
         
In 1930, the Director of the Little Gallery in Cedar Rapids paid Grant Wood to go to Eldon, Iowa to conduct an art workshop about plein air painting (open air). Here, Grant Wood discovered the simple five room white farm house that would be forever immortalized as the backdrop for the American Gothic painting. Cedar Rapids recently honored Grant Wood by having a Grant Wood summer festival called "Overalls – All Over". Twenty-nine statues that are parodies of the American Gothic were displayed through out the city. Stone City, Iowa provided settings for many of Grant Wood’s paintings.    
There is a replica of the American Gothic house in Stone City, IA.
 

In honor of Grant Wood’s contribution to Iowa, The State of Iowa is considering having the American Gothic as the image on the back of its U.S. Quarter (coin) to be issued in December, 2004.


The 18th BCCE logo imparts the idea that Iowa uses renewable resources and chemical processes to produce various sources of energy. For example, corn is used as the starting material for the synthesis of ethanol. The Erlenmeyer flask is a symbol for the chemistry teaching and research laboratories. The safety goggles and laboratory coats represent the strong commitment the Department of Chemistry at Iowa State University has for safety. In Iowa and at the 18th BCCE, we hope you will find "Chemistry: Everywhere". Quite simply, the parody of Grant Wood's American Gothic was selected as the basis for the 18th BCCE logo because it says "Iowa", "chemistry", and "people".


The 18th BCCE logo is based on a design by Carole Katz, Oxford, Ohio, and was digitally modified for the 18th BCCE by Susan Gertz, Miami University of Ohio. The 18th BCCE Committee thanks Susan Gertz for her work and patience in designing and modifying the logo.


Reference: Corn, Wanda M. (1995). Grant Wood: The Regionalist Vision. Yale University Press (for the Minneapolis Institute of Arts), New Haven, CT. ISBN: 0-300-03104.

This web page was up-dated on August 13, 2002 by Tom Greenbowe, Department of Chemistry, Iowa State University.