Folk Art Society of America – fasa
Auction Ends: Oct 16, 2022 12:00 AM EDT

Art

Jack Savitsky - 'Miners Train' Lithograph

Item Number
135
Estimated Value
150 USD
Leading Bid
50 USD

The winning bid will go to FrontStream Global Fund (tax ID 26-3265577), a 501c3 nonprofit organization, which will send the donation to Folk Art Society of America (tax ID 541415937) on behalf of the winner.

Number of Bids
5  -  Bid History

Live Event Item

After the online close, this item went to a Live Event for further bidding. Absentee Bidding offered.

Item Description

Lithograph of Jack Savitsky's "Miners Train", signed and dated '80 lower right and numbered 20/300. Railroad scene with a train heading to a factory. 23"h x 29"w. Jack SavitskyÂ’s Miners Train depicts a coal-fired passenger train traveling between Pottsville and Silver Creek, two well-known coal towns in Pennsylvania. Behind the smoky plume of the locomotive stand a blue-gray coal breaker and three mill houses — the very houses that make up the paintingÂ’s border. Savitsky conveys the sameness and unending work of the company town through his use of repetitive patterning and decorative elements. However, the lively colors and cheerful rural setting also reflect an energetic spirit within the miner community.

Item Special Note

Jack Savitsky (1910 - 1991) Born in 1910 into a family of nine, 'Coal Miner Jack' Savitsky attained only a sixth grade education. Then he had to go to work, and the only work was the coal mines. He had a strong desire to create pictures and used chalk to make pictures on the walls in the mines. Occasionally he would draw pictures in bars for a pint of whiskey, a pack of cigarettes, or five gallons of gas. After 35 years in the mines and suffering black lung disease, he retired in 1960 and began to draw and paint in earnest.

Donated By:

Terri Johnson