In the early 1930s, American artist Grant Wood rejected European abstraction in favor of what he called regionalism. Regionalism is an art movement that celebrates the unique culture and values of a particular region. For Wood, this meant painting rural scenes from his home state of Iowa.
Wood believed that artists should paint what they knew and loved. He once said, I saw that the modern artists had left America for Europe and were busy imitating European styles... I decided that somebody should be painting America as it really was.
Wood's best-known work is probably American Gothic, a painting of two farmers standing in front of a farmhouse. The painting caused a sensation when it was first exhibited in 1930, and it remains one of the most iconic images in American art.
While Wood's work is sometimes criticized for being too sentimental or simplistic, there is no denying the power of his paintings to capture the spirit of middle America. In a time when many artists were looking to Europe for inspiration, Wood showed that there was plenty to love right here at home.