American Gothic

A plain white farmhouse with a pointed arch window sets the stage for Grant Wood's 1930 painting "American Gothic," probably the most recognized image in all of American art. Wood spotted the actual house in the little town of Eldon, Iowa, and was struck by its window built in the Carpenter Gothic style. He pictured the kind of solemn, no-nonsense people who might live there, then posed them in front stiff as fence posts. The models were folks he knew personally: his sister Nan and his dentist, Dr. Byron McKeeby. Contrary to popular belief, the pair are not a married couple but a farmer and his single daughter.

Reactions were mixed when the work first went on view. A number of Iowans took offense, sure that Wood was mocking country people by making them look sour and dull. He argued the opposite, saying he wanted to celebrate them, though he confessed a bit of humor had crept in. The crisp, almost fussy detail comes from his love of old Flemish and German masters he had studied while traveling in Europe. The pitchfork, the buttoned-up faces, and the man's stony stare eventually turned into a national symbol of rural grit, endlessly borrowed for cartoons, ads, and greeting cards. Not bad for a quiet portrait of two everyday people standing outside their house.