Resorts at Sea: May: The Cost of Art

The 1980s was when the cruise line industry began replacing their older ships, some dating back to the 1950s. Today ships measure anywhere from 150,000 to over 200,000 gross tons. Can you imagine getting excited over a new ship that’s a mere 36,000 tons? Well, that was the size of Carnival’s Tropicale in 1982, arguably the first ship of the modern cruise industry.

These new ships had to be decorated, and whenever a new ship debuted, the phrase “million dollar art collection” was usually attached. But what did it take to decorate the ships in my Resorts at Sea study?

Early indicators found that when taking account for inflation and size of ship, the cost of art was comparable. However, as I'll explain later, I didn't factor in all the variables.

 

At left is a sketch by Bernard Perlin for one of the hall spandrels for President Hayes.

At right is an entry from Perlin for the Rio Hudson-class competition. (Images courtesy

of Bernard Perlin and Michael Schreiber.) Below is a page from the April 1941

issue of American Artist magazine with the Rio Hudson competition highlighted. 

The first numbers I got were courtesy of David Hendrickson. I had the results of the Section of Fine Arts competition for six ships of the President Jackson-class, he had the announcement. So like baseball cards, we traded. A total of $6,940 ($115,900 today) was allotted for each ship. Bernard Perlin won two commissions: hall spandrels and library mural for President Hayes for $3,150 ($52,590). While they furnished him with the marinite panels, he had to provide the paint plus whatever else he needed to do the job, so I'm not sure what he netted. There was a second ship art competition in the spring of 1941 for the four ships of the Rio Hudson-class, but money and interest was waning.

The second number came from Henry Dreyfuss' book Designing for People (1957). Dreyfuss wrote the art budget for Independence and Constitution was $100,000 each ($972,000).

I had delayed this post in order to recheck my math, but I found I wasn’t comparing apples to apples. Art collections on today’s cruise ships are a mix of newly created artwork and purchased art. By purchased art I mean works that have already been created and found at a gallery, or part of a corporate collection. Holland America, Royal Caribbean, and Celebrity have amazing collections. Holland America recycles art from past ships, dating back to 1938’s Nieuw Amsterdam, plus new works, plus antiquities several centuries old. Celebrity has pieces of Olympic (Titanic’s sister), Normandie, and United States in specialty restaurants. So while the numbers give some indication, there's no real correlation.

Resorts at Sea - September 2012

Those who even have a passing interest in ocean liners are aware of the etched glass panels in the First Class Ballroom on the United States. Edge-lit, the undersea motif was created by Charles Gilbert and executed by Harriton Glass Company. Many of the panels are on display in the SS United States Restaurant on board the Celebrity Infinity.

The May-June 1952 issue of the Shipyard Bulletin, put out by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, said the sandblasting technique used to create these panels was “the first time this method of carving has ever been applied to fine art.” 

Au contraire …

Cleveland, Ohio native Elsa Vick Shaw designed a glass mural that ended up in the dining room of the 1941-built passenger-cargo liner President Hayes. Made up several panels, they depict a lush South Pacific scene, which was part of the route of these "Round the World" American President liners. While Shaw designed it, Rose Iron Works did the execution.

Elsa Vick Shaw's sketch of the enormous etched glass mural for the President Hayes.

Taken from The Studio, February 1941.

 

I spoke recently with Bob Rose, of Rose Iron Works about this mural. There are two sample panels in their museum, one of which you can see here. Bob’s dad, Melvin, did the work. Sadly, he passed away in February of this year. Bob is working on preserving the company history and was able to get his dad on video talking about the early days. Even though Mr. Ross was a friend of Shaw, he recalled that they got into a bit of a discussion on how the breasts of the native girls were turning out. Shaw was not happy. (It’s all in the details.)

The President Hayes made only one voyage from March to June 1941. After that trip, the Navy took her over. The Hayes served in World War II, and had trooping duties well into the 1950s, when put into the Marad Reserve in Suisun Bay. In 1975, the President Hayes was scrapped.

As the Hayes was the third of the President Jackson-class, and only made one voyage, few photos exist. (Generally, the first born gets the most attention ... “Marcia! Marcia! Marcia!”) A search into American President Line archives is going on right now. I will be over the moon if interior shots of the Hayes are found, but sadly, odds are these sketches may be the only pieces that remain.

Resorts at Sea: July 2012

As I was writing last month’s Resorts update, I was just completing what one may call a devouring of Who Was Who in American Art. It’s a reference guide to American artists active from 1898 to 1947. Roughly 50% of my artist list for this project was covered; better than I had hoped. The book, as well as encouragement and new avenues of exploration, was provided by a new acquaintance.

Also in my greedy clutches is an article from The Studio detailing the works onboard the President Jackson-class of 1940, which is a boon. Why? Because it’s illustrated!

 

The President Jackson of 1940. Seven ships were in this class. Only two
returned to serve for American President Lines.

I’ve also identified about half a dozen artists still living. The youngest is 87, the oldest 95. I’ve written them, and so far have heard from two. One did a mural for the United States, and is possibly the last of the artists who did work for any of the big public spaces on the superliner. The other did work for the President Hayes, one of the aforementioned President Jackson-class. The latter was decorated through a contest held by the Maritime Commission and the Section of Fine Arts, a Federal Works Agency; basically a piece of FDR’s New Deal.

There are several books out there regarding the hundreds of post office murals created through the New Deal, but only a handful of ships were decorated in this manner. Over 400 artists entered over 1,400 designs as part of this contest. If there are images of each entry somewhere in some archives, one could almost do a book on those alone.

But let’s try to finish this one first.

 

 The 1950 President Jackson on the left, the super Del  Norte on the right.

I stumbled across the Wolfsonian Library during a recent Google search. There I found a rendering of a proposed super Del Norte, for the Delta Line, of which I found a brief mention in the Pacific Marine Review. From the outside, it’s easy to mistake it for the ill-fated President Jackson-class of the early 1950s. The President Jackson’s were requisitioned by the Navy for the Korean Conflict and never saw service under the American President Lines flag. Both were designed by the firm of George G. Sharp. This has led me to definitely include a chapter on the ships that were designed, but never made it off the drawing board. (It’s been on the bubble.)

In a weird twist, I think I may have found the patent application describing Emile Norman’s technique used in creating his decorative screens for the Observation Lounge of American Export Lines’ Independence. If it’s not, then it’s what led up to it. And I really want to dig behind an article I have regarding American Export’s plans for their own version of the United States. She would’ve been roughly the same size, but not as fast.

While this picture is in the Tourist and Cabin Class brochures,

it's really the playroom for First Class on the ss United States.

I’ve also been focusing on Charley Harper. If I ever have kids, they will be raised on Looney Tunes, and the works of Charley Harper. His illustrations are pure elegance and simplicity. He did the prints that hung in the Tourist Class Children’s Playroom on the United States. I have a brochure with photos of the Tourist Class public spaces, however, the one noting the children’s playroom is actually for First Class. Whoops! To be fair, the records say Charles Harper did the prints, but given that Charley Harper illustrated a children’s book in 1950, and the playroom prints are labeled The Goose That Layed the Golden Egg, Little Boy Blue, Three Little Pigs, Jonah and the Whale, Rock-a-Bye Baby, and Humpty Dumpty, I think I’m safe in making the leap.

The more I dig into the backgrounds of these artists, it’s not hard to conclude that the arts play a vital role in our society. Many of the artists had stints as teachers – they paid it forward. Many of them have works in museums and collections around the world. They've created a legacy to inspire generations to come.