Artwork of the Week: November 11
On this day in 1972 (November 11), Florence Ware died at the age of 80. Florence Ware exhibited artistic talent from an early age: born to a prestigious family in Salt Lake City, she was privately tutored in music, ballet, and the arts. After receiving her bachelor’s degree at the University of Utah, Ware studied at the Art Institute of Chicago, graduating with high honors. She went on to work professionally as a painter, illustrator, costume designer, muralist, and interior designer for many years. Ware was fascinated by color and light, and loved creating scenes of humans in nature. She said, “Probably the most interesting phase of art to me is the subtle beauty of color as it is shown and developed. . .I should like to arrange so far as I am able the perfect setting for a work of art.” The very best examples of her work show intimate details of nature and sophisticated understanding of color relationships. This love is brilliantly shown in this piece, as her vibrant colors leap from the canvas and the textured brushwork infuses the work with life.
Ware painted for the Works Progress Administration creating murals during the Great Depression. One of her murals can be seen at Kingsbury Hall on the University of Utah campus. After an 18-month tour of Europe and the Near East, she returned to Utah and became the first President of the Association of Utah Artists in 1940. She taught at the University of Utah for 25 years.
