There Used to be an Art School Inside New York City's Grand Central Terminal
My latest read explores that and the double standards for women in the art world.
“For most New Yorkers, Grand Central Terminal is a crown jewel, a masterpiece of design. But for Clara Darden and Virginia Clay, it represents something quite different.
For Clara, the terminal is the stepping stone to her future. It is 1928, and Clara is teaching at the lauded Grand Central School of Art. Though not even the prestige of the school can override the public's disdain for a "woman artist," fiery Clara is single-minded in her quest to achieve every creative success—even while juggling the affections of two very different men. But she and her bohemian friends have no idea that they'll soon be blindsided by the looming Great Depression...and that even poverty and hunger will do little to prepare Clara for the greater tragedy yet to come.
By 1974, the terminal has declined almost as sharply as Virginia Clay's life. Dilapidated and dangerous, Grand Central is at the center of a fierce lawsuit: Is the once-grand building a landmark to be preserved, or a cancer to be demolished? For Virginia, it is simply her last resort. Recently divorced, she has just accepted a job in the information booth in order to support herself and her college-age daughter, Ruby. But when Virginia stumbles upon an abandoned art school within the terminal and discovers a striking watercolor, her eyes are opened to the elegance beneath the decay. She embarks on a quest to find the artist of the unsigned masterpiece—an impassioned chase that draws Virginia not only into the battle to save Grand Central but deep into the mystery of Clara Darden, the famed 1920s illustrator who disappeared from history in 1931.”
This week’s book is a first for me — The Masterpiece by Fiona Davis, an author I’ve yet to read.
The story is set in New York City’s Grand Central Terminal in both the 1920s and 1970s. Apparently, there used to be an art school inside this famous building from 1923-1944.
I love the idea that if I were an artist during that time I could’ve called Grand Central Terminal my school. To think I could go to class at noon and catch a train to somewhere new and exciting by 3. It feeds my little art and travel-loving soul.
In reality, the Grand Central School of Art was responsible for the educations of Norman Rockwell and Willem de Kooning.
In The Masterpiece the Grand Central School of Art was where one of our main characters, illustrator Clara Darden taught.
I’m about halfway done with this book and so far it captivatingly bounces back and forth between Clara Darden (a struggling female artist teaching at the art school in hopes of a big break into the male-centric) and Virginia Clay (a recently divorced mother trying to kick start her new life).
Fiona Davis has a whole host of artsy New York City books to dive into, and I’m so excited to devour them all!
Have you read anything by Fiona Davis?
Which book should I read next?