Louis Goodman Ferstadt (1900 - 1954)

Farm Tragedy (Untitled), c. 1930s, mixed media on plaster on panel, unsigned, 22 1/8 x 32 inches; label verso reads: "New York Artists Equity Association, New York, NY," provenance includes estate of the artist, the artist's sister, Artist Equity Association

$8,500

Louis Goodman Ferstadt was a Ukrainian-born American artist renowned for his work as a painter, muralist, and comics illustrator. Born in Berestechko, then part of the Russian Empire, Ferstadt immigrated to Chicago with his family in 1910, fleeing the violence of a pogrom. He began his formal art education at Hull House and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (1918–1922) while working for the Chicago Tribune. In 1923, he earned a scholarship to the Art Students League of New York, studying under Kenneth Hayes Miller. After his scholarship ended, he continued his studies at the Educational Alliance Art School, where he later taught. Ferstadt’s early career included creating the comic strip The Kids on Our Block for the New York Evening Graphic (1926–1927). He was also known for comics like Chuck, Mr. Risk, and The Bouncer, and he contributed regularly to the Daily Worker, reflecting his commitment to progressive politics. Ferstadt was also a member of the American Artist's Congress, a leftist arts organization.

During the late 1920s, Ferstadt lived in Brooklyn with his brother and in 1928, he had his first solo exhibition at the Society for the Advancement of Judaism. As a muralist, Ferstadt painted significant works, including murals at the RCA Building and the Eighth Street Subway station in New York City in connection with the 1939 World’s Fair. He was active in the Siqueiros Experimental Workshop and the Mural Artists Guild, advocating for artists’ rights. His art often depicted social themes, combining abstraction with classical realism and adopted uncommon stylistic approaches such as neo-pointillism and graphic cross-hatching, as in the case of the present work. With its modernist depictions of workers, machinery and the stylized built environment, Farm Tragedy (Untitled) is a prime example of Ferstadt's work from the inter-war period.

Ferstadt exhibited extensively in the 1920s and 1930s at venues such as the Salons of America, the Art Institute of Chicago, the National Academy of Design, and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. His works are held in collections including the New York Public Library, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Tel Aviv Museum, and the Jewish Museum of Birobidzhan. He passed away from a heart attack in August 1954 while camping in Phoenicia, New York. Ferstadt is listed in Who Was Who in American Art and other standard references.