Resorts at Sea: Oh yes, it's another ss Argentina post

I’ve said on several occasions the 1948 postwar renovation of Moore-McCormack’s Argentina has been an obsession.

Given the controversy surrounding the modern art in her newly renovated spaces, obtaining color photos was paramount. Granted, there will be some instances where black and white will just have to do, because some of these ships simply didn’t have a long enough life where color photos exist. Two of the pieces are in the hands of the Smithsonian, two more were published in Fortune magazine, and I’ve found one more in a brochure. But Loren MacIver’s mural Voyage has been the proverbial white whale. I came across a stunning black and white photo of Voyage in an issue of Interiors + Industrial Design a few months back, but I still wanted that color.
 

I found a brochure online. What surprised me was given the vitriolic comments lobbed at this art photos containing said art were still being used as late as 1952, which is the date on the brochure I won. (While I have read calls to change out the artworks, it was never done.)

Ok, this should satiate my need for all things Argentina for the moment. This month, I’ve been reviewing the papers of sculptor Austin Purves, Jr. through Smithsonian microfilm. He did work for America, United States, Santa Rosa, and Santa Paula. So much to process, but it’s been very fun looking at the creative process.

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: 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.

Won't you let me take you on a sea cruise? (updated)

*Update (9 January)*

The addition of public rooms on the President Cleveland and President Wilson, and status of the history project.

While packing to leave Missouri and then Iowa to head out to Colorado, I procrastinated a little by thumbing through my ocean liner collection. The collection began with postcards then moved to brochures and deck plans. And while I have a little from just about every major steamship line in Europe, I've been focusing on American companies.

American steamship lines really came into their own after World War II before succumbing to jet travel in the mid-1960s. This time period (1946-1965) also encompasses the Golden Age of Advertising. (Mad Men alert!) Mid-century design really appeals to me. The clean lines and bold colors are timeless.

Anyway, I began to notice trends in design; the designs of the printed materials and the external and internal architecture of the ships.

The above plan of the Delta trio shows part of the rounded superstructure. Notice how the cabins follow the curve. These ships were built in 1946, and this kind of cabin arrangement wouldn't be seen again until P&O's Canberra in 1960.

American President Lines started building a similar trio in the early 1950s. The same architect designed these ships as well as the Delta trio, hence the similarities, especially the rounded superstructure. Sadly, with the Korean War, these President liners were appropriated for the Navy and never saw commercial service. One thing I found interesting is the balcony for the main lounge. I think just about every balcony I've seen on a ship runs fore to aft, with the center open to below. This is the first one where the opening looks to the port side (or any side for that matter).
A popular pair on the Mediterranean were American Export Lines' Independence and Constitution (which would see service for American Hawaii Cruises in the 1980s). This a drawing of the Boat'n Bottle Bar. I really like the lines on the deck radiating from the bar. The interiors of these ships were designed by Henry Dreyfuss. If you don't know the name, you know the products. Remember the round Honeywell thermostats? The Twentieth Century Limited (as highlighted in North by Northwest)? The AT&T desk and wall phones from the 1960s? Those and many, many other everyday items came from his drawing boards.

Perhaps my favorite ocean liner is the United States. I could talk for days about her, and no, sadly, that's not a metaphor. Built in 1952, she took 12 hours off the Queen Mary's best time across the Atlantic. She was so speedy, she could run in reverse faster than most of today's cruise ships can go forward. In my mind, she was the epitome of Mid-century Modern. The top rendering is the First Class Dining Room, the bottom, the First Class Restaurant.

I'm hoping to gather more information on these and other ships to illustrate this side of American design. I've no idea of a timeline. I've been collecting since junior high, so who knows?

Status Update

Apologies for the quality of the following images. They're from a 50+ year old American President brochure for President Cleveland and President Wilson. When you're folded up for most of that time, you don't unfold very well. (Plus my scanner is still in Iowa.)

The first image is of the typical First Class Lanai Suite. There's a little bit of an Asian influence, especially with the window screens. The bottom shows the First Class Main Lounge and Smoking Room. Both are quite contemporary in design.

I've also come across several more designers and artists involved with post-war refurbishments (of pre-war ships) and the new post-war liners. The scale and scope of this project leaning towards more of a treatise than a simple look back. Now a treatise does not scare me. Yes, it makes me pause, but "the game is on."

At this point, I think I've gleaned everything I can from The New York Times. I will need to go back into the periodical indexes to explore the works of these new people. Archives will need to be culled, once I locate them, as some of these companies no longer exist. Color images will come at a premium, but a 1949 article from Fortune shows so many possibilities!

Interestingly enough, eBay has become a resource with its ocean liner memorabilia listings. And if I cannot afford the prices, I can at the very least cut and paste the images as they'll serve as a departure point for further research.