Dreaming Sweet in C

Selected Works from Grant Wood

Grant Wood was born in rural Iowa in the US on February 13, 1891. Wood is known for his role in American Regionalism, an art movement that highlighted rural American life and believed that to be the solution to the problems plaguing the country during the Great Depression. Though Wood studied in France, he dedicated his work to the American Midwest, most notably through his painting American Gothic (1930). Fun fact: American Gothic depicts a man and his daughter or wife, but the subjects are based on Wood's sister and their family dentist.

Though Grant was closeted during his life, he had a circle of friends who knew about his sexuality and supported him. Regardless of how we might feel about Wood's idea of rural America being the "solution" to American cities and the Great Depression, his work did have a large impact on defining a uniquely American art style for the time period.