Henry Varnum Poor

Henry Varnum Poor was a painter, sculptor, potter, and architect. He was born in Chapman, Kansas, in 188 and began studying art as an undergraduate at Stanford University. In 1910, he departed for Europe, where he studied under Walter Sickert at the Slade School in London and at the Académie Julian in Paris. Upon his return to California in 1911, Poor taught art at Stanford University and the California School of Fine Arts. After serving in the military during World War I, he moved to Rockland County, New York, and began working in ceramics. By the late 1920s, he became known for his painting and received commissions in the 1930s to paint murals for the U.S. Department of Justice building and the U.S. Department of the Interior building in Washington, D.C. His mural style has been compared to that of Mexican muralist José Clemente Orozco, who used strong lines, muted colors, and active compositions. During World War II, Poor headed the War Art Unit of the Corps of Engineers and served on the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts from 1944 to 1945. Poor was also a designer, furniture maker, and author. He helped found the American Designers’ Gallery in New York and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Maine.