Author: CT State Library

Lyons, Matthew (1911-1972?)Matthew Lyons completed 48 easels for the WPA, though 43% of these were rejected or returned to the artist. He lived in Bridgeport, Connecticut during his tenure with the project from 1938 to 1939. Sources: WPA Artist’s Work Card; Social Security Death IndexWorks of Art Listed in CT Archives' database from Matthew Lyons:Still Life- House:oilBreakfast:...

Little, Nathaniel (1893)Nathaniel Little was born on February 18, 1893 in Helena, Montana. He attended the University of Montana where he received his Bachelor of Arts. He also studied at the Art Students League of New York and at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. He practiced illustration and eventually took up painting. Little’s work was exhibited at the National Academy...

Lawson, Katherine Stewart (1891-?)Katherine Stewart Lawson was born Katherine Stewart in Indianapolis, Indiana on May 9, 1891. She attended school in Washington D.C. and went on to the Chicago Art Institute where she won an “honorable mention” in sculpture. She won a scholarship at the Art Students League in New York, and from that time forward she focused exclusively on sculpt...

Lauretano, Michael (1915-2008) Michael Anthony Lauretano was born August 28, 1915 in Thomaston, Connecticut. He graduated from Yale University in 1938 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts and began his work for the WPA Federal Arts Project on August 4, 1938 restoring colonial designs and painting murals in historic buildings throughout Connecticut and New York. Most of his work under ...

Lang, Karl (1897-1952)Karl Lang was born in Biberach, Germany on September 9, 1897, the only child of a wealthy family. At the Upper Real School at Stuttgart, he learned English and drawing. His father urged him to go into Colonial service, but Karl preferred drawing. His instructor, Herr Gansmueller, encouraged him to pursue art. When he was 16 or 17, Lang came to America. In ...

Lambdin, Robert Lynn (1886-1987) Robert Lambdin was born in 1886 in a sod house on the prairie in Kansas. He was reared in Denver, Colorado and attended schools there. He then attended the Henry Read School of Fine Arts in Denver for a year and went to work in the art departments of the Rocky Mountain News and the Denver Republican. His job required that he complete a drawing ...

Laing, Arthur (?)The only work of Arthur Laing’s for the Federal Arts Project was a six ft. by four ft. Air Raid Warden Chart done in oil in New Haven for the Hartford State Defense Council in 1941. Otherwise nothing is known. There were an Arthur and Marie Laing in Chester but Arthur’s obituary does not mention his artistic skills. Marie, on the other hand, was an artist. Ther...

Lagana, Filippo (1896-1963)The sculptor Filippo Lagana, also known as Philip Lagana, was born on April 27, 1896, in Italy. He was a graduate of the Beaux Arts Institute of Design. He came to live in Darien, Connecticut. Lagana was a member of the Darien Guild of Seven Arts and the Silvermine Guild of Artists. His portrait, Clarence Roe, is in the Pennsylvania Museum of Art. He ...

LaFarge, Bancel (1875-1938)Bancel LaFarge was born in 1875 in Newport, Rhode Island. He was the son of John LaFarge, a famous 19th century artist. He married Mabel Hooper in 1898. She was an artist in her own right who had studied under John LaFarge. She could trace her family back to Commodore Oliver Perry. During this period of his life, LaFarge was an assistant to his father...

LaBrecque, Louis (?)Louis LaBrecque began his work for the WPA Federal Arts Project in 1935. In total, he painted eleven murals under the Project. He worked on the Bushnell Park Nativity Scene, painting the statues in life-like colors. His work was allocated to the Hartford Municipal Hospital and the North West School. LaBrecque was married to Winifred Lynch. Tragically, his so...