American Gothic

Hello. I am a painting hanging on a big wall. So many friendly faces come to see me every day. Inside my frame, there are two people standing very still. There is a man with a serious face. He is holding a big fork. Next to him is a woman. Her eyes look kind, but she seems a little worried. Behind them is a little white house. My favorite part of the house is its special window. It is pointy on top, just like a little eyebrow looking out at the world. I may be a quiet picture, but I have a very big story to share with you.

My painter was a kind man named Grant Wood. He made me a long, long time ago, in the year 1930. One day, Grant was driving his car when he saw the little white house with the pointy window. He thought it looked so interesting and a little bit funny. It made him smile. He decided he wanted to paint a picture of the kind of people who might live in a house like that. He asked his sister, Nan, to be the woman in the painting. Then he asked his dentist, Dr. McKeeby, to be the man. Grant gave them old-fashioned clothes and serious faces to tell a story about hardworking farm families who lived a long time ago.

My name is American Gothic. For many years, people have looked at me and wondered about my story. Are the people happy? Are they sad? Are they about to go work in the garden? The best secret is that there is no right answer. I am here to help you imagine. You can look at the man, the woman, and the funny little house and dream up any story you want. Every time you look at a painting, you help bring its story to life. I hope you imagine a wonderful story for me today.