Memories, ideas roll in for Wood

A  couple of weeks ago, I asked for your thoughts on how best to celebrate Grant Wood's 125th birthday in 2016. Some of my colleagues and others in the community and across Iowa are starting to think about celebrating Wood's legacy and his continued relevance to a new generation.

Several of you weighed in with ideas.

Multiple readers expressed a common theme - that more should be done to highlight and promote local sites tied to Wood's life and work.

One reader, Marty Morrow, who moved to Cedar Rapids just six months ago, said he thinks more could be done to welcome visitors to Wood's iconic stained glass window at the Veterans Memorial Building, along with better signage and marketing of Wood's 5 Turner Alley studio.

Morrow, among several others, would like to know more about local homes Wood had a hand in designing and decorating. Theatre Cedar Rapids, he said, should consider putting on small theatrical productions at Wood's studio just as the artist did when he lived there.

'In summary, I don't think his (125th) should be just an event and then we're done. I think it should be used to build the infrastructure that supports and promotes GW in the CR area. Something generations of folks will benefit from if they are lucky enough to happen upon the area,” Morrow wrote.

Clark McLeod says we should think bold, including the possibility of renaming the city's busiest street, First Avenue, 'Grant Wood Way,” with signage along its route leading visitors to other Wood sites and attractions. An intriguing idea, considering it's the road that leads on to Anamosa, Wood's hometown and his final resting place.

In Iowa City, Howard Hintze suggests that the University of Iowa's 1936 Art Building, where Wood taught and had a studio, should include space dedicated to the artist's legacy. The historic, flood-damaged building is sitting idle while plans are made for its future use.

So there are a lot of ideas out there. But I also received messages from folks whose families had personal ties to Wood and his work.

A terrific one came from Randy Devine, whose father, George Devine, lived a couple of doors down from Wood's home in Iowa City in the early 1940s.

George Devine was working in a neighbor's yard when he was approached by Park Rinard, Wood's secretary. Rinard asked Devine if he would be willing to model for the artist.

'I didn't know exactly what that entailed, but figured that almost anything would be better than yard work at 30 cents an hour,” George Devine recalled in a written history recorded by Randy's brother, George Devine Jr. George Sr. died in 2000.

'The room had a bare wooden floor and walls, a sky light, and one light bulb hanging from the ceiling. The furniture included two straight-backed wooden chairs and an easel. Mr. Wood positioned me with one foot on a spade and told me to hold that position taking a break at any time, which turned out to be about every 20-30 minutes. After about two and a half hours, he said he was finished and then showed me his charcoal or pencil sketch approximately 8 x 10 in size,” the elder Devine recalled. 'He then gave me $5 for my efforts and I headed for home, assuming and hoping that nobody would ever find out about this. Mr. Wood then used the sketch to complete his last major painting which was called ‘Spring in Town.' ”

'Spring in Town” would appear on the cover of 'The Saturday Evening Post” in April 1942, a couple of months after Wood's death. A promotional photo of Devine shot by the magazine made its way into the local newspaper. 'And I became an instant celebrity, for a few days,” recalled Devine, who was an infantry officer fighting overseas during World War II.

Years later, in 1972, Devine and his wife were on their way to watch George Jr. graduate from West Point when they took a detour into Terre Haute, Ind., where 'Spring in Town” resided at the Sheldon Swope Art Museum. They called ahead to make sure it was on display and were told a Champagne reception was being held to celebrate the anniversary of its acquisition. Would George Devine be willing to serve as the guest of honor?

'Dad of course said no way (he was very modest). Mom of course said yes. Guess who won?” Randy Devine wrote. 'Dad was the subject of another painting that night, but none of us knew about (it) until a few years ago.”

That painting, 'Me and My Shadow,” by James Shepard, depicts George Devine standing in front of 'Spring in Town” with his shadow stretching into the painting.

It just so happens that 'Spring in Town” hangs prominently in our dining room in Marion, so it's great to know the rest of the story about that guy leaning into his spading fork. Please keep those ideas and recollections coming. My email and phone are listed below.

' Comments: (319) 398-8452; todd.dorman@thegazette.com