Name/Title
Sabalauskas, Joseph (NA) "The Spring Tree"Entry/Object ID
2025.900.FA18258Tags
Oil PaintingDescription
Vivid colors are accentuated via the time of day at which this painting is set—either at sunrise or sunset—and by comparison to a pale blue sky. The titular “spring tree” probably is a cherry in bloom, but a taller one also seems to display blossoms. Sabalsuskas’ unusual portrait orientation emphasizes not only the trees’ verticality, but a pastoral scene in the foreground of grazing cattle. Several brushstrokes appear to take pleasure in color for its own sake.Collection
Mt. Morris TB Hospital FAP CollectionMade/Created
Artist
Sabalauskas, JosephDate made
Feb 2, 1937Condition
Overall Condition
FairDate Examined
Jul 31, 2025Notes
4+ chips right of cows/upper left sky, 2+ holes lowest cloud/pink cloud, white paint drips/bubbles in paint from stain on back down right sideRecommendations
requires cleaningProvenance
Provenance Detail
Created under the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Art Project (1930s–1940s), this collection of easel paintings was originally installed at the Mount Morris Tuberculosis Sanitorium in Livingston County, New York. Following the sanitorium’s closure in 1970, the artworks were abandoned and remained in storage until their rediscovery decades later. Now preserved and exhibited by the Genesee Valley Council on the Arts (GVCA), the collection is housed at the New Deal Museum in Mount Morris. Current efforts include digitization, high-resolution photography, and the creation of an online archive to ensure long-term public access and research availability.General Notes
Note Type
Cataloging NoteNote
See the entry titled 'New Deal Collection' for supporting documents, and general historic and research information.
