The second half of the 1930’s proved to be
extremely busy for Felix. It would see him marry for a
second time, become a widower, become a citizen, achieve
National fame upon winning the design competition for the
Jefferson nickel, and complete nearly ½ dozen sculptures and
murals.
On April 23, 1937, a 45 year old Felix Schlag and a 27 year old
Natalja "Nellie" Strunk were issued a marriage certificate by
Michael J. Flynn, clerk of Cook County. The ceremony took
place on May 16, 1937 and was officiated by Rev. Theodore
Andres, pastor of the
Bethlehem
Lutheran Church located at 1410 Greenwood St., Evanston,
Illinois. Nellie was Felix's second wife and together they made
their home at 245 W. North Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, in an
apartment building located a few blocks west of Lake Michigan.
Born in Poland, blue eyed, blond haired Nellie stood just 5’-3”
tall and was skilled as a dress maker. Brown eyed, brown
haired Felix was 5’-4” tall and employed by the Works Progress
Administration (WPA) as a Senior Artist/Sculptor servicing the
Federal Art Project (FAP). He was assigned to WPA/FAP
Project #2-1 under the supervision of Raymond B. Carlson.
Felix earned $94 per month in this capacity; just over $3 per
day.
In the summer of 1937 the Section of Painting and Sculpture
released Bulletin #13 covering the activities from March-June
1937 and detailing new artistic contests. In fact, “the
most important National Competition for sculpture initiated by
the Treasury Department, Procurement Division, Section of
Painting and Sculpture…” was announced. The pamphlet made
known that two large stone sculptures were sought for the East
Terrace of the Apex Building (Federal Trade Commission) located
in Washington, D.C. The winning designs would receive
$22,800 each for a total contract of $45,600! Considering
it would take him 40 years to earn a comparable amount on his
WPA wages, Felix participated and was one of the 245 artists who
submitted models.
As summer turned to fall in 1937, Schlag would be re-assigned to
WPA/FAP Project #100-1, still under Supervisor Carlson.
Based on statements Schlag made about when he began work on the
sculpture for the Bloom Township High School, it is highly
probable that this was Project #100-1. In the midst of
this he was likely busy working in the nighttime hours on his
designs for the Apex Building and he filed his Petition for
Naturalization in the District Court of the United States of
Chicago, Ill. Unfortunately, the fall was also the noted
timeframe when his bride of just a few months took ill.
In late January 1938, shortly after the January 15 deadline for
the Apex Building model submissions, Bulletin #14 was published
by the Section. The leaflet provided additional details
surrounding the judging of the Apex competition and announced
the national contest for the design of the new five-cent
coin. Having completed the Apex models, Felix moved on to
his next challenge and began sketching ideas for the new nickel;
struggling to find a likeness of Thomas Jefferson that truly
inspired him.
Felix Schlag's sculptural
models for the Apex competition
On February 8, 1938 Schlag was granted his United States
citizenship; nearly four years after having formally declaring
his intention on August 16, 1934. By March 2, 1938,
Nellie’s health had declined so much as to force her admittance
to the hospital. Tragically, she would succumb to her
illness just 12 days afterward; the official cause of death
being listed as pulmonary tuberculosis. Church records
confirm that on March 19, 1938, Nellie was laid to rest with
services being held at the
Bethlehem
Lutheran Church. Her cause of death captured in
church documents was, "nervous exhaustion following pneumonia at
the age of 28 years, 10 months, and 16 days."
Felix did not win the Federal Trade Commission (Apex) Building
sculpture competition. His models; however, impressed the
selection panel and he was one of 26 honorable mention awardees
to earn a future appointment. Official documents from the
Section of Painting and Sculpture dated March 23, 1938 evidence
their request to change the planned decoration of the White Hall
Post Office from a mural to a sculptural relief and employ Felix
Schlag to complete the work. The Director of Procurement
approved this request on April 15, 1938; the same day Schlag
submitted his designs for the Jefferson nickel!
Three days later, on April 18, Felix would receive a letter from
Edward Rowan, Superintendant, Section of Painting and Sculpture
inviting him to submit designs for the sculptural relief in
White Hall with the specification that this was an appointment
vice a competition and advising that the total compensation
would be $700 to cover the “work, materials, casting, and
installation.” Before Schlag had a chance to contemplate
the Post Office project he received a telegram from Rowan
requesting a biography. This was followed by a phone call
a day later, on April 21, 1938, advising him that he had won the
national competition for the new five-cent piece.
On April 30, 1938, Felix formally accepted the White Hall Post
Office appointment in a letter to Edward Rowan.
Additionally, Schlag advised that he was planning a visit to
White Hall during the first week of June to familiarize himself
with the area and to observe the space where the relief would be
installed. The month of May was spent finalizing his
submission to the sculptural contest for the 1939 New York
World’s Fair and contemplating the nine changes Schlag was
requested to make to his Jefferson nickel design.
According to an Associated Press report, the Mint received
Schlag’s revised sketches on June 9. A letter from Felix
to Director Ross confirms that he completed the revisions and
mailed them a day prior; likely just before travelling to White
Hall.
Upon returning from White Hall, Felix continued his employment
with the Chicago FAP, working on projects (possibly the
sculptural groups for the Champaign Jr. High School and the
Bloom Township High School) during the daytime. At night
his attention was devoted to modeling his revised nickel design
and developing concepts for the White Hall commission.
Beginning on July 4, 1938 Schlag would spend his days supporting
WPA/FAP Project #200-1 (likely the Bloom Township High School
project) under the supervision of F.M. Sherlaw and Gerard
Lambert and his evenings would remain reserved for his other
works; including continued refinements of the five-cent
piece. The final nickel designs were submitted on July 11,
1938 and ultimately approved by the Commission of Fine Arts on
July 18th and by the Treasury on July 21st.
From
July 28, 1938 – October 9, 1938 an exhibit entitled, "Art for
the Public by Chicago Artists" was held. The event was
sponsored by The Federal Art Project Works Progress
Administration in conjunction with the Art Institute of
Chicago. A work of Schlag's entitled, "The Runner" was
featured. The 16" tall mahogany statue was designed by
Schlag, and potentially carved by Robert Tuttle (
http://digital-libraries.saic.edu/cdm/ref/collection/mqc/id/1291).
The Lawson School, Chicago, IL. reportedly sponsored
piece.
With the nickel revisions behind him, Schlag was now able to
focus more attention on his plans for the White Hall Post
Office. On September 23, 1938, Felix offered to Edward
Rowan, Superintendent of the Section of Painting and Sculpture,
three preliminary sketches for consideration. The subject
matter of the first two was more generically focused on the
history of the Post and consistent with themes offered by the
Treasury as early as its first Bulletin in March 1935. The
third was focused on the local interest and history of the
place. Following are Schlag’s descriptions of the three
sketches:
No. 1 - Three heads forming the center part of the relief,
personifications of old and modern types of mail transportation,
supported left and right with corresponding smaller reliefs.
No. 2 - Showing in the center the old fast post rider, left -
modern fast train and airmail, right -transatlantic mail.
No. 3 - Visiting the location, and after conversation with the
postmaster and leading citizens, showed there is a preferred
interest to have an illustration of their main industry,
pottery. Following their suggestion resulted in sketch #3, the
process of making pottery in olden times.
Within a few days, Superintendent Rowan wrote to Felix advising
him that sketch No. 3 was the preferred topic. On October
19, 1938, Schlag would again put forward three sketches, focused
on the “ceramic” theme requested by Rowan. On October 22,
Rowan would write to Felix congratulating him, “on the charm of
this latest work” and informing him that the Section preferred
the “one which shows the little burro facing the potter.”
The Potter and his
Burro, White Hall, Illinois Post Office
During this same time frame, Schlag was working on at least two
other major sculptural projects for the WPA/FAP, one for the
Champaign Illinois Junior High School and the other for the
Bloom Township (Chicago Heights, Illinois) High School.
Additionally, from February 9 to March 12, 1939, he participated
in the 43rd Annual exhibition by Artists of Chicago and
Vicinity, held by the Art Institute of Chicago, displaying two
sculptures; entry numbers 249 and 250, "Man" and "Woman"
respectively.
April 1939 would see Felix complete the White Hall relief and
prepare for the delivery and installation of the piece in early
May. A letter dated May 19, 1939 from Felix to Inslee
Hopper confirms that he began installation in White Hall on May
12 and completed mounting the relief the following day.
Upon completing the installation in White Hall, Felix travelled
to northern Michigan, in all probability the Elk Rapids area,
where his future third wife, Ethel Levin was a school
teacher. Returning to Chicago by the first week of June,
Schlag wrote to Edward Rowan indicating he had been away for two
weeks due to illness.
On June 1, 1939, the “Small Athletic Group”
sculpture was delivered to the Champaign, IL Junior High
School. The piece, which was designed to show the
necessity for both formal and physical education, included two
girls: one holding a tennis racquet, and the other reading from
a book. The sculptural group, weighing an estimated ton, was
installed inside the school beginning on Tuesday, June 6, 1939
and ending on Thursday, June 8, 1939. There was an
official unveiling shortly thereafter; an event that was
captured on page 24 of the Sunday June 11, 1939 edition of the
Champaign News-Gazette. It is unknown if Schlag was
present during the installation and viewing ceremony.
Champaign Junior High School was originally located at 610 West
University Avenue. In 1956 it moved to 306 W Green Street
and became Edison Junior High School, which is now called Edison
Middle School. The old 610 West University site became
Champaign High School, now known as Central High School.
The facility on University Avenue has undergone several major
renovations throughout the years; one in 1955 and another in
1998. Unfortunately, the athletic group statue is no
longer at the building and there is no documented record of what
happened to the piece. It is suspected that during one of
the renovations, it was torn down, moved, or taken by a private
collector. In the place where the sculpture was originally
placed stands a door to the athletic director’s office.