Flats (c. 1923): Art, History and Details

Flats (c. 1923) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Frank Wilcox (American, 1887–1964).

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

Because of its marshy location on the Cuyahoga River’s floodplain, the area known as the Flats was an unpopular place to build housing and instead became the center of Cleveland’s industry. Instead of emphasizing large factories and smoking machines, however, Wilcox captured the quiet dignity of the area. The inclusion of a boat and wooden structures is reminiscent of scenes from popular artist retreats such as Provincetown, Massachusetts, elevating a notoriously polluted area of Cleveland to the status of picturesque beauty.

Object facts

• Title: Flats
• Date: c. 1923
• Creator attribution: Frank Wilcox (American, 1887–1964)
• Culture: America, Ohio, Cleveland
• Type: Print
• Technique: etching
• Dimensions: Platemark: 12.1 x 17.5 cm (4 3/4 x 6 7/8 in.); Paper: 22.2 x 27.9 cm (8 3/4 x 11 in.)
• Collection: PR - Etching
• Department: Prints
• Accession number: 1924.616

A detail from the museum

Today, the area known as "the flats" has been redeveloped numerous times and is known for its entertainment venues and residential areas.

Collection credit

Dudley P. Allen Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• W. M. M. “Review of the Exhibition.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 11, no. 5 (1924): 99.
• Frank Wilcox Entry Card to 1924 May Show. Cleveland Museum of Art May Show Records, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.