First Inhabitants
North Wall, Neodesha, Kansas Post Office
Bernard Joseph Steffen
» » Steffen was born in Neodesha, Kansas, in 1907 and graduated from Neodesha High School in approximately 1925. He studied at the Kansas City Art Institute and with Thomas Hart Benton at the Art Students League in New York. He died in 1980 in his favorite city of Woodstock, New York. One of his pastimes was playing the dulcimer, and he painted The Dulcimer Player in honor of his hobby.
Neodesha residents do not have to go to the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D. C., where they have four of his works, but you only have to travel as far as the Post Office. Inside you will find his painting First Inhabitants, an oil on wood he did for them in 1938. Here is a small copy of of his work, which encompasses the north wall of the Post Office:
First Inhabitants
North Wall, Neodesha, Kansas Post Office
Unlike rich bottomland, rocky upland soils are difficult to cultivate, often being left for pasture. Here a farmer attempts to cultivate a rocky hill in his work, Upland Plowing:
There does not appear to be a published biography of this talented artist, possibly because his work so closely resembles that of Thomas Hart Benton. But it is possible so little is known about him due to his political persuasions and friendships. His friend, Sam Eskin, had made a good deal of money investing in a startup company he worked for called United Parcel Service. Sam bought an old farm which consisted mainly of a chicken coop and an old barn. Sam slowly cleaned and fixed up the property until it was finally suitable for human habitation beginning in about 1948.
Bernard "Steff" Steffen was among those Woodstock personalities that hung out at the barn, and today we would have called them beatniks or hippies. They quickly adopted the views of the Communist Manifesto, Marxism, Stalinism, and the political far left. Heavy drinking, smoking and partying was standard fare, with a generous dose of sex thrown in. Sam played his guitar and Steff his dulcimer for long sessions of singing folk songs. The Kingston Trio eventually recorded one of Sam's ballads. Most of the guests were well educated and spoke several languages.
His friend Buckminster Fuller would occasionally visit, as well as electronic wizard Emory Cook, said to have invented the LP record. Emory and Ed Villchur, inventor of the AR speaker (Acoustic Research) and the Resound Hearing Aid, wired the barn with a top quality sound system suitable for a recording studio. More details are available at http://www.casa-chia.org .on the life of Sam Eskin and his friends.
Regardless of his friendships or political beliefs, Bernard Joseph Steffen was an accomplished artist and we can be proud of his Neodesha affiliation. Here are a few more of his works. A Steffen lithograph sells today for about $2,000 in good condition, depending upon subject matter.
Below is one of his better known works
