Mary E. Hutchinson

(American, 1906-1970)

A portrait of Rosario Russell Fiore, 1929

oil on canvas

canvas: 20 by 26 inches

frame: 25 ¼ by 31 ¼ inches 

Mary E. Hutchinson practiced as a professional artist in New York and Atlanta during the mid-twentieth century. Though little known today, she achieved critical recognition and produced more than 250 works, including oil paintings, drawings, and etchings. Her artwork features highly finished, introspective portraits, especially of women and African Americans, and is significant for its critical engagement of gender, sexuality, and race. 

(Turner, Jae. "Mary E. Hutchinson." New Georgia Encyclopedia)

Rosario R. Fiore was a prominent American sculptor and member of the National Sculpture Society.  Fiore studied at the Mechanics Institute, the National Academy of Design, and the Beaux Arts Academy.  Protege of Robert Aitken, he assisted with the creation of the figures in the pediment of the Supreme Court Building, the front of the Archives, and in the Samuel Gompers Memorial.  

Other notable achievements include serving as a sculptor for the National Park Service and WPA, the Smithsonian, the Department of the Interior, receiving awards for service provided to the US Army, and undertaking commissions for the White House during the Truman and Kennedy administrations.  Born in New York, he was active there, in Washington and in Jekyll Island, Georgia.