Collection: Edwin Howland Blashfield

Edwin Howland Blashfield (1848–1936) was an American painter and muralist. He was active in the United States, also working as an illustrator and writer. Blashfield is recognized for his large-scale decorative commissions, including the murals on the dome of the Library of Congress Main Reading Room in Washington, D.C.

Blashfield's artistic practice centered on large-scale mural decorations for public and institutional buildings. His work often incorporated allegorical figures and historical narratives, as seen in studies such as Minnesota, Granary of the World (1904) for the Senate Chamber of the Minnesota State Capitol, and A Group of Men Representing Various Branches of Human Thought (1907/8) for the College of the City of New York. He also executed studies like The Edict of Toleration of Lord Baltimore (c. 1904) for the Baltimore Courthouse.