LA High School Library Unwittingly Houses Valuable Artwork
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By Rocco Staino -- School Library Journal, 3/18/2009 2:00:00 PM
The teens at Louisiana’s Bolton High School had no clue about the treasure trove housed in their library—and it wasn’t just the books. It turns out that the two paintings of oak and pine trees, which have hung in the media center for decades, are by American artist Ellsworth Woodward—and they’re valued at $300,000.
It all started a few years ago, when Charlene Johnson, a media specialist at the school, began researching the artist online. She discovered that Woodward, who was born in 1861 in Seekonk, MA, became the head of the art department of the Newcomb School at Tulane University and is considered to be instrumental in developing Newcomb Pottery, an important part of the Arts and Crafts Movement from about 1870 to 1920.
The information caught the attention of the school’s alumn
i association, which felt that the artwork might be of value and arranged for Robert H. McHarg, director of the Fine Arts Gallery of New Orleans and a member of the International Society of Appraisers, to appraise the two paintings. McHarg came back with an estimate of $150,000 each.
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American artist Ellsworth Woodward |
The district made arrangements to loan the paintings—which were a gift from the 45 seniors of the class of 1917—to the local Alexandria Museum of Art until funds for a school museum can be raised to house them.
Funny enough, an SLJ tweet on Twitter asks readers, “Do you have original art/murals in your library? Tweet a pic for us to see.”
This is not the first time that a painting by Woodward was discovered in an unusual place. In January, one of his paintings was found at a Goodwill charity in Tennessee.
