Object Record
Images
Metadata
Object ID |
2015.18.01 |
Object Name |
Carving |
Description |
This finely detailed carving of Chevy Chase Streetcar #11, Capital Traction Company, was created by the artist and designer William Sharon Farr, Jr. (1937-2007) in the early 1990s. It was displayed at the 1995 CCHS Spring Champagne Gala, held at 17 West Kirke Street, and again in October 2006, at the CCHS program, "Chevy Chasing History: A Heritage Fair." Mr. Farr, who attended the California School of Fine Arts (now the San Francisco Art Institute), was a graphic artist by profession and in retirement worked in varying mediums in his home art studio. He eventually discovered his love for the three-dimensional creations he carved from wood. Although not trained in this technique, he discovered his innate inkling toward sculpting in wood. He used a variety of woods in his work, including bass wood, ebony, pinewood, maple, and cherry, working with what he had on hand. He created many "whimsical faux folk art" carvings, as he called them, as gifts for family and friends, but he was also commissioned by people who heard of him through word of mouth or saw his art in someone's house. His birds and fish were the most popular, but many corporations commissioned awards which he carved. The carving of the Chevy Chase Streetcar is mounted on a wooden platform, 23.75 inches by 10.5 inches, and includes a number of human figures, both inside and outside the streetcar, each hand-carved from wood. The streetcar itself is approximately twelve inches by six inches, with the electrical trolley line extending above the car. Representing streetcar passengers in the early 20th century, the carved figures are dressed in the style of the period, with men in suits and women wearing hats. There are ten figures standing outside, on both ends of the streetcar, and a dog follows a boy running along one side. For example, a young white girl sits on a bench holding hands with a woman of color, perhaps her care-giver. A man in a top hat watches as a woman in a long skirt reaches up to step on the trolley. Seven passengers sit inside, and two conductors, dressed in their blue uniforms, stand at each end of the car. A picket fence runs along one side of the model, and small boxes and bags of groceries are located by it, representing the practice of deliveries made by the streetcars. A green box breaks up the picket fence and disguises the electrical system that lights the interior of the car; a cord and plug are connected at the bottom of the green box. A variety of materials were used to construct this particular carving. Each figure is carved from wood; their hats and some elements of their clothing are made of paper, and each is painted. The construction of the streetcar itself combines various materials: woods, metals, plastics, and thread. Like the figures and the fence along the back, it is also carefully painted. The car sits on metal rails embedded in the wooden platform. Sharon Farr was a great grandson of Senator Francis G. Newlands, the founder of the Chevy Chase Land Company. His father, William Sharon Farr, a grand nephew of Senator William Sharon, was president of the Chevy Chase Land Company from 1946 to 1972, and his mother, Janet Sharon Johnston Farr, was a great granddaughter of Senator William Sharon and a granddaughter of Senator Francis G. Newlands. Read more about Mr. Farr's parents in their joint oral history interview, recorded in 1986, CCHS 2006.33.01. And for more information about Sharon Farr, see his own CCHS Oral History Interview, recorded in 2006: CCHS 2006.28.01. |