Marjorie Rowland Clarke (1908–1997) was an American artist and sculptor who won the federal commission to complete the post office mural for

Wewoka, Oklahoma Wewoka is a city in Seminole County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,271 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Seminole County. Founded by a Black Seminole, John Coheia, and Black Seminoles in January 1849, Wewoka is the ca ...

, as part of the

Section of Painting and Sculpture Section, Sectioning, or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section s ...

′s projects, later called the

Section of Fine Arts Section, Sectioning, or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...

, of the Treasury Department. In addition to her mural, the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

medical buildings exhibit her sculptures.

Early life

Marjorie Jane Rowland was born in 1908, in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

, to Mary Virginia (née Zollickoffer) and James M. H. Rowland. Her father was an obstetrician and the dean of the

University of Maryland School of Medicine The University of Maryland School of Medicine (abbreviated UMSOM), located in Baltimore City, Maryland, U.S., is the medical school of the University of Maryland, Baltimore and is affiliated with the University of Maryland Medical Center and ...

. Rowland attended Girls' Latin School in Baltimore, graduating in 1925. She went on to further her education at

Goucher College Goucher College ( ') is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Towson, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1885 as a Nonsectarian, nonsecterian Women's colleges in the United States, ...

. Completing her studies in 1929, Rowland then studied sculpture at the

Maryland Institute College of Art The Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) is a Private university, private art school, art and design college in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1826 as the Maryland Institute for the Promotion of the Mechanic Arts, it is regarded as one of ...

. In 1933, she graduated earning a scholarship to study abroad from the

Rinehart School of Sculpture The Rinehart School of Sculpture is the MFA granting sculpture program of the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) located in Baltimore, Maryland. It was ranked in 2016 as the #3 MFA degree program in the country for sculpture by U.S. News & ...

. That same year, she married Carl Dame Clarke.

Career

In 1936, Clarke created a bust of her father for the medical library at the University of Maryland. The sculpture was commissioned in celebration of Dr. Rowland's twentieth anniversary as the dean and fortieth anniversary as part of the university faculty. In 1941, she won a federal commission to complete a post office mural as part of the

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 ...

projects of 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 ...

. The painting, ''Historical Background of Wewoka'' is still extant in the

, post office. Clarke worked as a sculptor until 1975, but continued exhibiting until 1989, when she held her last showing Goucher College.

Death and legacy

Clarke died January 16, 1997, at

Towson, Maryland Towson () is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 59,533 in the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Baltimore County and the second-most populous unincorpo ...

. Her works at the University of Maryland are on exhibit in the medical buildings. Her husband, dedicated two books to her: ''Molding and Casting for Moulage Workers, Sculptors, Artists, Physicians, Dentists, Criminologists, Craftsmen, Pattern Makers and Architectural Modelers'' (1946) and ''Metal Casting of Sculpture'' (1948). In the earlier volume, he confirmed that she was consulted to confirm that the information was technically correct and to discuss the problems involved with plaster casting. He also included photographs of her sculptures in the book.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Clarke, Marjorie Rowland 1908 births 1997 deaths Artists from Baltimore Goucher College alumni Maryland Institute College of Art alumni Sculptors from Maryland People of the New Deal arts projects 20th-century American women sculptors 20th-century American sculptors