Art in Red Wing

What happens to the American small community in periods of war and challenge, change and uncertainty? In an age of planning, why not look at the community basis for planning? With these two questions as a basis, the University of Minnesota, in 1943, began one of the most exhaustive studies of an American community undertaken in recent times. Red Wing, Minnesota, on the banks of the Mississippi River in Goodhue County was chosen as the “typical small American city.” Professors of education, economics, sociology, art, home economics, journalism, and public health joined with city officials and civic leaders in studying every aspect of the city and its people. Their findings are published in eleven bulletins, each devoted to an individual topic. The entire survey, entitled The Community Basis for Postwar Planning, was coordinated by Roland S. Vaile, professor of economics and marketing at the University of Minnesota, and made possible by a grant from the Graduate School. The present study, Art in Red Wing, considers the public role of art and architecture in the reconstruction of the postwar Red Wing community; examining a variety of artistic expression including housing style, civic architecture, window displays, public sculpture, and pottery.

Art in Red Wing was first published in 1946. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions.