Artist Details
| Artist Name | Jenne Magafan |
|---|---|
| Born | 1916 in Chicago, Illinois |
| Died | 1952 in Albany, New York |
Artist Biography
The name Jenne Magafan cannot be mentioned without that of her twin-sister, Ethel, as they were both artists who worked closely together, primarily active in the first half of the 20th century. The Magafan sisters were selected to paint two of the twelve Nebraska post-office murals completed in the 1930s. Jenne created Winter in Nebraska located in Albion, Nebraska and Ethel painted Threshing located in Auburn, Nebraska. Although the sisters often worked together, in 1945 that they began to develop individual styles after spending time at the Woodstock Art Colony in New York. Jenne completed several other murals outside of Nebraska for the WPA program and created drawings and prints that were regarded as “sensitive renderings.” Cornstalks is a small lithograph completed in 1955 depicting a cornstalk, leaning from the wind, with a black bird resting upon it. The artist created a similar scene, yet without the black bird, in her painting Autumn Wind. Cornstalks may have been a study for that painting.
