George Snow Hill (1898–1969) was a painter and sculptor in the United States known as a

muralist A mural is any piece of Graphic arts, graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' ...

. He lived in

St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the List of municipalities in Florida, fifth-most populous city in Florida and the most populous city in the sta ...

until his death in 1969. He founded the Hill School of Art in St. Petersburg in 1946.

Early life and career

Hill was born in

Munising, Michigan Munising ( ') is a city in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Alger County, Michigan. The population was 1,986 at the 2020 census. The city is partially surrounded by Munising Township, but the two are a ...

in 1898.Mural Studies for the St. Louis Post Office, ca. 1939
Richard Norton Gallery He studied

naval engineering Naval architecture, or naval engineering, is an engineering discipline incorporating elements of mechanical, electrical, electronic, software and safety engineering as applied to the engineering design process, shipbuilding, maintenance, and op ...

and

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

Lehigh University Lehigh University (LU), in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, United States, is a private university, private research university. The university was established in 1865 by businessman Asa Packer. Lehigh University's undergraduate programs have been mixed ...

from 1917 until 1918, before graduating with a bachelor's degree in 1923 from

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

where he met his wife Polly Knipp Hill. They studied in Paris together in the 1920s and were married there. She did etchings.A Legacy Takes Flight
by Lennie Bennett, ''

St. Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', called the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It is published by the Times Publishing Company, which is owned by The Poynter Institute f ...

'', October 13, 2002. Hill went to Paris on a fellowship at the

Académie Colarossi The Académie Colarossi (1870–1930) was an art school in Paris founded in 1870 by the Italian model and sculptor Filippo Colarossi. It was originally located on the Île de la Cité, and it moved in 1879 to 10 rue de la Grande-Chaumière in the ...

and the

Académie de la Grande Chaumière The Académie de la Grande Chaumière () is an art school in the Montparnasse district of Paris, France. History The school was founded in 1904 by the Catalan painter Claudio Castelucho on the rue de la Grande Chaumière in Paris, near the A ...

, and had a studio in the city. His work was shown at the Salon des Artistes Francaise from 1923 until 1929, and he had a one-man exhibition at Simonson Galleries in Paris in 1924. In 1924, he also exhibited at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

in London. Hill returned to the United States in 1929, and worked as a portraitist in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

before establishing a studio in St. Petersburg, Florida in 1932. His work was also part of the painting event in the art competition at the

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932, in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held du ...

. Hill's works include the mural ''Long Staple Cotton'' in the

Madison, Florida Madison is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, on the central northern border of Florida, United States. The population was 2,912 at the 2020 census. History The territory now known as Madison County was ruled at various times by S ...

post office, commissioned by the

Treasury Section of Fine Arts A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry; in a business context, corporate treasury. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be st ...

, and completed in 1937. He signed his paintings G.S. Hill.

Controversial and lost work

Hill's style has been compared to that of Thomas Hart Benton, who was

New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...

muralist as well as John Stuart Curry and

Grant Wood Grant DeVolson Wood (February 13, 1891February 12, 1942) was an American artist and representative of Regionalism (art), Regionalism, best known for his paintings depicting the rural American Midwest. He is particularly well known for ''America ...

.Milton Fire
/ref> Hill's figures, like those in the

Mannerist Mannerism is a style in European art that emerged in the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520, spreading by about 1530 and lasting until about the end of the 16th century in Italy, when the Baroque style largely replaced it ...

style, are elongated. His scenes include action. Some of his work was done for the

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; from 1935 to 1939, then known as the Work Projects Administration from 1939 to 1943) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to car ...

. A commission for work in a

Clearwater, Florida Clearwater is a city and the county seat of Pinellas County, Florida, United States, west of Tampa, Florida, Tampa and north of St. Petersburg, Florida, St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies T ...

courtroom was stopped by Judge John U. Bird in 1934 because he did not want "pictures of sunbathers with brassiere-type bathing suits hanging over my bench." Another of his murals was torn down in 1966 by activist Joseph Waller because the mural of white sunbathers and black entertainers on the beach "depicts Negroes in a most despicable, derogatory manner." Further objections arose in 1998 over a bare breast in a mural at the

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a Maritime Security Regimes, maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with cust ...

station in St. Pete. Hill's painting at the Madison Post Office was also controversial when a postmaster raised concerns over the depiction of all-white supervisors and black workers alongside white workers. Hill produced five murals for the Pinellas County Courthouse in

depicting county history. Hung in the Clearwater City Auditorium, they became lost after the building was razed in the 1960s. He did two St. Petersburg scenes of the pier and a picnic for City Hall. African-American community leaders later objected to the depictions of black musicians in ''Picnicking at Pass-a-Grille''. After it was torn down, the painting was lost after the vandal's trial. He also painted a mural in the St. Petersburg Coast Guard building's wardroom depicting the service's history. A

1933 Chicago World's Fair A Century of Progress International Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States, from 1933 to 1934. The fair, registered under the Bureau International des Exposit ...

painting moved to the

Florida State Capitol The Florida State Capitol in Tallahassee, Florida, is an architecturally and historically significant building listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Capitol is at the intersection (road), intersection of Apalachee Parkway and F ...

was also lost, as well as murals for post offices in Florida and Alabama. Murals at Tampa's Peter O. Knight Airport were damaged when they were removed pending the airport's demolition. His aeronautical paintings included one showing

Tony Jannus Antony Habersack Jannus, more familiarly known as Tony Jannus (July 22, 1889 – October 12, 1916), was an early American pilot whose aerial exploits were widely publicized in aviation's pre-World War I period. He flew the first airplane from ...

' famous flight from St. Petersburg to Tampa. Several of the murals have been restored and are on display at the

Tampa International Airport Tampa International Airport is an international airport west of Downtown Tampa, in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. The airport is publicly owned by Hillsborough County Aviation Authority (HCAA)., effective May 15, 2025. The airp ...

.Artist George Snow Hill's murals sometimes created controversy
by Luis Perez, ''

Tampa Bay Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', called the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It is published by the Times Publishing Company, which is owned by The Poynter Institute ...

'', April 27, 2010.

Personal life

George Snow Hill was married to Polly Knipp Hill, with whom he had a son named George Jr. His wife died in 1990. Myers Fine Art and Auction House purchased George Snow Hill's estate in 1990.

Work

* Paintings for the Ferargil Galleries in New York City in 1927 and 1929 * Paintings for the Syracuse Museum of Fine Arts, Syracuse, New York, 1927–32 * Painting at the J.B. Speed Art Museum, Louisville, Kentucky, 1928 * Pinellas County Courthouse/Clearwater Municipal Auditorium in Clearwater, Florida, 1934 * Coast Guard Station murals in St. Petersburg, Florida, 1937 * U.S. post office murals in Perry, Florida, 1940 * Mural of the St. John River for the Florida buildings at the

Century of Progress A Century of Progress International Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States, from 1933 to 1934. The fair, registered under the Bureau International des Exposit ...

Exhibition in Chicago, Illinois, 1933 * ''Cypress Logging'' (1938) for the

Perry, Florida Perry is a city and the county seat of Taylor County, Florida, United States. , the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 6,898. The city was named for Madison Perry, fourth governor of the state of Florida and a Confederate colonel ...

post office Hill painted this oil on canvas mural for the Treasury Section of Fine Arts in 1938. The panel honors the mostly African American laborers who contributed to the local lumber industry. It has since been restored. * Murals for

1939 New York World's Fair The 1939 New York World's Fair (also known as the 1939–1940 New York World's Fair) was an world's fair, international exposition at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City, New York, United States. The fair included exhibitio ...

* ''Building the Tamiami Trail'' painting in the Wolfsonian Institute's permanent collection in Miami, Florida * Work at the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

, Washington, D.C. * Work at the

Georgia Museum of Art Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, Athens, Georgia * ''Serenity'' * Mural studies for the St. Louis post office competition, ca. 1939 * ''Loading Pulpwood'' A Section of Fine Arts mural for the 1941 Milton, Florida post office, later displayed at the Imogene Theater When a new post office was built, it was moved to the Santa Rosa Historical Society Museum. A fire there in the last few years, resulted in the mural being moved back to its original location in the old post office. * ''Garden Cafeteria''

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

mural of Florida flora and fauna, St. Petersburg (destroyed in August 2012 when the building was demolished)Thesis * ''Long Staple Cotton Gin'' for the Madison, Florida post office *''Fishing at the Pier''Experts restore WWII-era mural in St. Petersburg City Hall
December 20, 2013 St. Petersburg Tribune and ''Picnicking at Pass-a-Grille'' for St. Petersburg City Hall. The murals were commissioned by Mayor Walfred Lindstrom and the St. Petersburg City Council in 1940 under a federal art project of the WPA, but World War II terminated the project. Hill, however, continued to work on the murals at his own expense and donated them to the City when he was finished. *Stained glass window at St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church, 34th Street South in St. Petersburg, Florida

Early life and career

Controversial and lost work

Personal life

Work

References

Further reading