The Post

Hildreth Meière’s Art Deco style enlivens her wall relief sculpture in bronze silhouette that decorates the lobby of the Logan Square Post Office in Chicago, Illinois. It was the first time that Meière had worked in this medium. The commission came as a result of her having submitted an “outstanding design” as her entry in a competition for a panel to decorate the Justice Department Building. Although the panel was never executed, artists who presented “outstanding designs” were given the opportunity to decorate post offices.¹When she received the commission to decorate the wall of the Logan Square Post Office, Meière worried about creating a hackneyed image. She sent a sketch of Mercury to Inslee A. Hopper, Assistant Superintendent, Section of Painting and Sculpture, with the following explanation:

As to subject matter, I assumed from the blueprints that a figure subject was desired. I realize quite well how hackneyed the Mercury symbol is, but until something else as recognizable comes along, it still seems a good bet. Wheels, wings, trains, aeroplanes, etc., etc., suggest transportation rather than the mail, and whereas running animals can give a fine design suggesting speed, they too have nothing to do with mail. An interesting design might be evolved from a stamping machine, but would it be recognized? If you do anything with a postman, it is apt to get funny, specially if it is at all stylized. Remains the eagle, either in flight, or very much formalized, as a central spot, which I gather is not desired.^[1]

Meière’s linear composition with Mercury is both dynamic and original.