Facts about American Gothic by Grant Wood

1. 06

   Oil on beaverboard rather than canvas, American Gothic measures approximately 78 by 65 centimeters, a relatively modest size given its enormous cultural impact.

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2. 05

   Wood submitted American Gothic to the Art Institute of Chicago's 1930 annual exhibition, where it won a bronze medal and a $300 prize.

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3. 04

   Widely parodied and reproduced, American Gothic by Grant Wood became one of the most recognizable images in twentieth-century American art.

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4. 03

   American Gothic is housed in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, where it has been displayed since shortly after its creation.

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5. 02

   The painting depicts a man holding a pitchfork standing beside a woman in front of a Gothic Revival–style house in Eldon, Iowa.

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6. 01

   Grant Wood painted American Gothic in 1930, using his sister Nan Wood Graham and his dentist Dr. Byron McKeeby as the two models.

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