Thursday, August 22, 2013

David Hicks Overmyer - Bourbon County District Courthous Mural

Lady Justice (Justice Enthroned) by David Hicks Overmyer (1889-1973) decorates a courtroom in Bourbon County, Fort Scott, Kansas.

Lady Justice or Justice Enthroned, by David Hicks Overmyer


Born in Topeka, Kansas in 1890, Overmeyer studied art at Reid-Stone Art School in Topeka, (now Washburn University), then studied at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, and, finally, at the Art Students' League of New York.

He painted Lady Justice in 1929. In her right hand, Lady Justice holds Corpis Juris (the body of law), along with a sword to enforce the law; in her left arm, a scale to balance competing claims.  In the right background  is the Washington Capitol.

In 1934, the Works Progress Administration commissioned four murals in the Hale Library at Kansas State University. The murals — titled Agriculture, Mechanics, Arts and Home. In 1937, Overmyer painted for Topeka High School, his alma mater, The Pageant of England. In 1951 he received a commission from the Kansas Legislature to paint eight scenes on Kansas history for the capital rotunda: The Coming of the Spaniards, Battle of Arickaree, Battle of Mine Creek, Building a Sod House, Lewis and Clark in Kansas, Westward Ho, Arrival of the Railroad, and Chisholm Trail. The murals were completed in 1953.

Other works by Overmyer are on permanent display at the Mulvane Art Museum in Topeka Kansas.

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