Violet Oakley was an American artist. She was the first American woman to receive a public mural commission. During the first quarter of the twentieth century, she was renowned as a pathbreaker in mural decoration, a field that had been exclusively practiced by men. Oakley excelled at murals and stained glass designs that addressed themes from history and literature in Renaissance-revival styles.
Violet Oakley (June 10, 1874 – February 25, 1961) Penn meets the Quaker, public mural from the Capitol building in Harrisburg
Lithograph by Oakley for The Lotos Library (1896)
The Pennsylvania State Capitol is the seat of government for the U.S. state of Pennsylvania located in downtown Harrisburg which was designed by architect Joseph Miller Huston in 1902 and completed in 1906 in a Beaux-Arts style with decorative Renaissance themes throughout. The capitol houses the legislative chambers for the Pennsylvania General Assembly, made up of the House of Representatives and the Senate, and the Harrisburg chambers for the Supreme and Superior Courts of Pennsylvania, as well as the offices of the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor. It is also the main building of the Pennsylvania State Capitol Complex.
Pennsylvania State Capitol in April 2022
The Hills Capitol (1822–1897)
The Cobb Capitol (1899–1902)
The capitol building, photographed by William H. Rau shortly after its dedication