Lot 328: AURIEL BESSEMER (WASHINGTON, DC, 1909-1986) WPA / NEW DEAL ERA PAINTING

AURIEL BESSEMER (WASHINGTON, DC, 1909-1986) WPA / NEW DEAL ERA PAINTING, oil on board, depicting a rural farm scene with cows, two farmers, a barn, sheaves of corn, and a mountain range in the background, probably the Blue Ridge Mountains, signed "To Berta Pierce / With all best wishes --- Auriel Bessemer '39&'53" lower left. Painted frame of unknown association. 6 7/8" x 13 3/4" board.

6 7/8" x 13 3/4" board.

1939-1953.

Excellent condition, small 1/4" x 1/2" rubbed spot above date, otherwise only some minor spotting.

Auriel Bessemer worked as a painter, illustrator, designer, teacher, and writer. She mounted 16 solo exhibitions at various venues including the Currier Gallery in Manchester, NH and the Public Library in Washington, DC. She was best known for her narrative paintings executed during the late 1930s to the early 1950s. Her most well-known commission was the seven murals painted inside the historic Joseph L. Fisher Post Office in Clarendon, Arlington Co., VA.