Letter
Dear Mr. Ryder:
In its meeting of 20 September, the Commission of Fine Arts reviewed a revised set of design alternatives for the reverse of the Connecticut quarter-dollar coin as part of the 2020 issue of the “America the Beautiful” series, superseding the designs that were presented in June 2018.
The Commission members present recommended alternative #6A to depict Weir Farm National Historic Site, consistent with the preference of the Mint’s liaison from Weir Farm. They reiterated their support for a design that conveys the theme of outdoor painting of the landscape, recalling the importance of this farm as the home of American Impressionist painter J. Alden Weir and as a continuing workplace for artists. Observing that the alternatives with a nearly completed painting on an easel would be unsatisfactory in conveying the Impressionist style at the small scale of the coin, they supported the nearly blank canvas featured in alternative #6A as the best compositional approach for conveying a painting in progress within the farm’s landscape.
As a quorum of the Commission was not present for the review of this submission, this recommendation will be placed on the administrative agenda for confirmation at the Commission’s meeting of 18 October. As always, the staff is available to assist you with future submissions.
Sincerely,
/s/Thomas E. Luebke, FAIA
Secretary
David Ryder, Director
United States Mint
801 9th Street, NW, 8th Floor
Washington, DC 20220