Jacobia Hotel

William H. Johnson, Jacobia Hotel, 1930, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.741
Copied William H. Johnson, Jacobia Hotel, 1930, oil on canvas, 19 7823 34 in. (50.560.4 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.741

Artwork Details

Title
Jacobia Hotel
Date
1930
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
19 7823 34 in. (50.560.4 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of the Harmon Foundation
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Keywords
  • Architecture Exterior — commercial — hotel
  • Architecture Exterior — commercial — Jacobia Hotel
Object Number
1967.59.741

Artwork Description

This painting shows an old hotel in Florence, South Carolina, that was once a fashionable destination for visitors coming through by train. In the 1930s the Jacobia had fallen into disrepair and was used as a brothel. William H. Johnson painted this scene in the expressionist style that he had adopted while in Europe, exaggerating the crooked walls and sloping floors so that the structure appears ready to collapse.