Painting from the Duck Suite, SS <I>United States</I>
date: label: Date made
content: 1950s
name: label: designer
content: Smith, Constance
label: SS United States' ship architect
content: Gibbs, William Francis
label: passenger on SS United States
content: Simpson, Wallis
label: passenger on SS United States
content: Edward Duke of Windsor
label: maker
content: Smith, Constance
notes: label: Description
content: This painting was part of the Duck Suite, the first-class luxury accommodations that included three upper-deck cabins aboard the ocean liner SS <I>United States</I>. The mural, which was designed by Constance Smith, decorated a wall of the suite’s sitting room. The scene of water birds is rendered in paint and gold leaf on aluminum panels and is the inspiration for the Duck Suite’s name. Renowned as the most luxurious of the 14 first-class suites on the ship, these rooms were typically chosen by the <I>United States’</I> most well-to-do passengers, from movie stars to British royalty. The Duke and Duchess of Windsor, regular passengers on the rival ship <I>Queen Mary</I>, switched their loyalties to the <I>United States</I> during the mid-1950s and booked the Duck Suite, which was their favorite lodging at sea for a time.
label: Description
content: Like everything on this flagship of the United States Line, the mural had to be crafted out of flame-resistant metal. The ship was filled with aluminum, selected by the ship’s architect, William Francis Gibbs, who designed the vessel to be as fireproof as possible. And though the massive amounts of aluminum did make the <I>United States</I> one of the safest ships ever launched, the metallic, modern décor also gave it a special feel unlike any other ocean liner. Most liners were decorated with opulent wood carvings and even had working fireplaces to make passengers feel as if they were sitting in their own living room or library. However, Gibbs put aside this notion of Victorian comfort with his new interior decorating style. The <I>United States</I> was the epitome of 1950s and 60s design: sleek, modern, and practical.
topic: label: related event
content: Postwar United States
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Maritime
label: See more items in
content: Transportation
label: See more items in
content: On the Water exhibit
label: See more items in
content: Art
label: Exhibition
content: On the Water
label: Exhibition Location
content: National Museum of American History
publisher: label: Related Publication
content: National Museum of American History. On the Water exhibition website
label: Related Web Publication
content: http://americanhistory.si.edu/onthewater
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Transfer from US Department of Commerce, Maritime Administration (through R. J. Blackwell)
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: TR.336767.017
label: catalog number
content: 336767.017
label: accession number
content: 1978.2219
objectType: label: Object Name
content: mural, duck suite
label: Object Name
content: mural
label: Other Terms
content: mural, duck suite; Maritime
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: painted (overall production method/technique)
label: Physical Description
content: paint (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: aluminum (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: gold leaf (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 61 3/8 in x 94 1/2 in; 155.8925 cm x 240.03 cm