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Perry Watkins - Androcles and the Lion: 2nd Christian

Androcles and the Lion: 2nd Christian (1934-1943)

Perry Watkins (American, 1907-1974 )
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License: All public domain files can be freely used for personal and commercial projects.
Why is this image in the public domain?
This work was commissioned by the United States federal government as part of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) program. It is not subject to copyright protection.

Perry Watkins was the first African American set designer on Broadway. He was also a stage painter, makeup and costume artist, producer, and film art director.

Born in Providence, Rhode Island on April 13, 1907, Watkins attended Hope High School where he and a friend hand wrote and decorated a daily newspaper called “The Foolscape.” Awarded a scholarship to study art at the Rhode Island School of Design in 1926, he studied figure drawing under Vincent Bernasconi and still life under Asa G. Randall, the school’s most prominent artists.

Despite having his paintings displayed at the Springfield (Massachusetts) Museum and the Providence Art Club, he struggled financially and worked as a waiter, chauffeur, insurance salesman, reporter, draftsmen, and commercial illustrator. By 1936, unemployed and broke, he applied to the Federal Theatre Project with a sample production, and was quickly employed.

Starting as a stagehand and becoming assistant technical director at Lafayette Theatre in New York City, he began a flurry of work, painting drops, dying costumes, and operating the lighting for several shows.

In 1939 Watkins made a breakthrough, becoming the first black Broadway set designer when he was commissioned by Guthrie McClintock for Mamba’s Daughters.

As a result of the show’s incredible success and a recommendation by Robert Edmond Jones, Watkins was permitted to take the drafting and art exam for admission into the Set Designer’s Union. He passed it easily and became the first African American to be admitted. In 1939 he taught in the Rose McClendon Workshop Theatre and the following year designed the set for the revival of The Big White Fog at Lincoln Theatre in Harlem.

Later in life he ventured into film and television, working on art direction and design for films such as Hercules in New York (1969) which debuted Arnold Schwarzenegger, Come Back, Charleston Blue (1972), the critically acclaimed blaxploitation film Across 110th Street (1972), and Gordon’s War (1973).

Perry Robert Watkins passed away August 14, 1974 in New York City at the age of 66.

In Collection: Federal Theatre Project (View all 1212)

Pinocchio: Yellow shirt, green coat, green shorts, and green cap with velvet ears

Pinocchio: Yellow shirt, green coat, green shorts, and green cap with velvet ears (1934-1943)

Paul Cadorette (American, 20th Century)
Boy Meets Girl

Boy Meets Girl (1934-1943)

Anonymous
Looking Backward: Unidentified Scene with High Line and Neighborhood

Looking Backward: Unidentified Scene with High Line and Neighborhood (1934-1943)

Edward Gilbert (American, 19th/20th century)
Life and Death of an American: 1st Street Corner Girl

Life and Death of an American: 1st Street Corner Girl (1934-1943)

Alex Jones (American, 19th/20th century)
Volpone

Volpone (1934-1943)

Anonymous
Emperor Jones

Emperor Jones (1934-1943)

Anonymous
Prologue to Glory: Sketch no. 2 (Cabin Exterior)

Prologue to Glory: Sketch no. 2 (Cabin Exterior) (1934-1943)

Frederick Stover (American, 20th Century)
The Black Crook: The Devil

The Black Crook: The Devil (1934-1943)

Sidney Carlyle (American, 19th/20th century)
Created Equal: Sketch no. 3, Lantern Slide (B+W)

Created Equal: Sketch no. 3, Lantern Slide (B+W) (1934-1943)

Paul Cadorette (American, 20th Century)
New York Fireman: Cabman. Purple cape, red trousers, whip, and purple cap

New York Fireman: Cabman. Purple cape, red trousers, whip, and purple cap (1934-1943)

Lucie Gilligan
See How They Run

See How They Run (1934-1943)

Anonymous
Six Who Pass While the Lentils Boil: Milkmaid

Six Who Pass While the Lentils Boil: Milkmaid (1934-1943)

Peter Crosby
Ready! Aim! Fire!

Ready! Aim! Fire! (1934-1943)

Anonymous
Sing for Your Supper: Spring

Sing for Your Supper: Spring (1934-1943)

Mary Merrill (American, 19th/20th century)
The Little Mermaid: Witch, Four Sisters, Four Fishes, Toads….

The Little Mermaid: Witch, Four Sisters, Four Fishes, Toads…. (1934-1943)

Robert Byrne (American, 19th/20th century)
View all 1212 Artworks

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License: All public domain files can be freely used for personal and commercial projects. .
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