Sy Mohr's "Annapolis" was installed on June 18, 2007 and held a dedication on June 25, 2007. It has already been seen by thousands of Annapolis residents and tourists and now will be seen by many more.
BIOGRAPHY
Sy Mohr (1923- ) is a contemporary American oil painter best known for large mural-like
depictions of people, their architectural environs and activities. His 150 paintings
celebrate the cultural and ethnic diversity of people in many parts of the world - U.S.,
Carribean, Haiti, Mexico, Canada, Scotland, Ireland, Israel, etc. Nearly always the people
are set in a place - be it city, town, or neighborhood - which speaks of them as richly as
theirclothing, shapes, complexions, races, groups, gender, and expressions.
Numerous Mohr works honor people of African and Spanish descent. They stand in
rebellion against the forces of conservative ethnocentrism, totalitarianism, hate, bigotry,
holocaust and war of the 20th Century. They signal the determined egalitarian
multiculturalismthat lies ahead as theworld shrinks and people draw together. In this
regard Sy Mohr paints a prototype of what theUnited States is at its best, and must
be in the future. And in the face of repression, depression,evil, and prejudice, and
the steel gray of poverty, crime and despair in urban life, Mohr responds
with a rainbow, an irrepressible joie de vivre, and a contagious love and acceptance
of people. Stylistically, Mohr was influenced by the glowing colors and thick, dark
outlines of Fauvist painterslike Georges Rouault (The Old King), which bring to mind
stained glass in cathedrals. Bright colors fill Mohr's works and add to their zest.
One also sees Cubist influences in Mohr's work, in the geometric shapes and lines
in faces and shadows and architectural surroundings. His brush even seems to
accentuate and exaggerate the differences between people. Shapes and faces are
disfigured and misshapen. Beauty is not on the surface. It emerges from within. The
people Mohr paints shout out they are beautiful too - in who they are and how they act
and what they do. They dare anyone to speak otherwise.
Mohr paintings are also filled with the sounds of polyglot conversations, accents, island
rhythms, guitars, jazz saxophones and trumpets, Jewish clarinets playing fast minor
scale melodies, and laughing children. You can smell the curry, Italian sausage, fried
chicken, hot peppers and apple pie cinnamon. There is salt water and bare skin and
salt water taffy. People gather and celebrate, dance, and sway to the music. They play
cards, watch kids play basketball, gather sailboats in harbors, and work together.
Portraitsof his wife and daughters show both the artist's outrageous wit and solicitous
fondness for his family.
Influence of the great muralists is evident, too. Many of Mohr's paintings are on a grand
scale - large enough to fill a wall. Houses and stores, factories and streets cascade down
canvases in towns and cities. Congregations of people move as a single mass across the
canvas. Mummers flow through the heart of Philadelphia. Anxious throngs march for
peace in Washington. Thousands celebrate at Woodstock.
Some have described Mohr's work as folk art, because many of his paintings are in a
flat, vertical perspective, use strong colors, and do not realistically depict human forms,
color, light and perspective. Mohr, though rooted in the folk art tradition, shows extensive
knowledge of the principles of art, gained through a lifetime of independent education.
He is in his words "deliberately primitive," seemlessly fusing the amateur's eye with
the master's hand.
Early Career. Mohr was born the Bronx, N.Y., where he grew up in semi-poverty.
His paintings seem to be a reaction to the hard, gray textures of the city, yet are fed
by its vibrant diversity. Mohr's father was a Jewish dry cleaner, and his mother a
Russian immigrant.
When he was 13, he painted a watercolor of Sunny Side, Long Island, which won first
prize in an art competition. Mayor Fiorello La Guardia presented his prize. His talent was
recognized by other New York artists including Alfred Stieglitz and Georgia O'Keefe.
Stieglitz put Mohr's work in his Manhattan gallery. Thus encouraged, Mohr went on to
study art at New York Textile High School.
In the Army in World War II Sy made camouflage clothing and taught soldiers how to
hide. After the war he painted backdrops for a theater, an activity that led him to paint
primarily large canvases.
In 1947 he married Berenice Drucker, a Fifth Avenue designer and stained glass
artist. They moved to Lancaster, Pa., a sharp contrast to the Bronx. In Lancaster they
had two daughters, owned and operated a fabric store and deli for 40 years, and became
friends with local Amish and Mennonites. Many of his paintings are of the Amish and rural
Lancaster. Then, circumstances forced the Mohrs to close their businesses. It was a
time of profound depression for them. They moved to Bowie, Maryland in 1981 to be
near a daughter, and started an interior design business. All the while, Sy kept
painting. This, and Berenice, continued to provide him with joy and hope. Berenice
Mohr died in 2003.
Later Career. In 1989 Mohr had a debilitating stroke which affected his speech and
took away his ability to read. This brought renewed depression. It has also brought
increasing joy and hope, however, as Mohr has fought back to regain his ability to
speak. While still in the hospital, he went to a blackboard and wrote the word "Joy" in
the center of it. He has refused to give up his painting, and through this lifelong pursuit
of his craft, continues to express his creativity, joy and hope, his love of people and
love of God.
ABOUT the artwork
Sy Mohr’s City Dock Harbormaster Collage speaks to the magical landscape that
welcomes citizens and visitors alike to the City Dock and the historical City of
Annapolis. His work takes us on a trip through time, progressively moving from the
past in the foreground to present day representations in the background encompassing
the eclectic mix of people and their streetscapes. The Maryland Statehouse and
History Quest are among the many places to visit from here. Look around,
follow your eyes, and go see all Annapolis has to offer.
