Pine Mountain Settlement School
Series 09: BIOGRAPHY – Staff
Abbie Winch Christensen Art
Calligraphy and calendar painting 

ABBIE WINCH CHRISTENSEN Art

Abbie Winch Christensen:
Housemother (Far House) 1924-1928
Teacher, English Folk Dancing 1927-1949
Teacher, Weaving, and Mechanical Drawing 1944-1949

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TAGS: Abbie Winch Christensen, Abby Christensen, art, calendars, memorials, calligraphy, WWII casualties, painting, poetry, Pine Mountain Church Committee

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The art of Abbie Winch Christensen at Pine Mountain is not a large body of work, but it gives a glimpse of the multiple talents of the long-time staff member at the School. Abbie (Abby) had multiple artistic skills including calligraphy, oil painting, weaving, and design. The following items allow a brief introduction to her skills.

ABBIE WINCH CHRISTENSEN ART: “In Memoriam” Plaque

In the early 1940s the world was becoming locked into World War II. It was a period of great stress for Pine Mountain with rationing of food, the uncertainty of funding, and most importantly the departure to join the fight by many of the young men who had attended PMSS or were still students. Some of those young men did not return from WWII.

The badly damaged plaque above, designed by Abbie Winch Christensen, lists the names of Pine Mountain students who were killed early in the conflict. They included:

Herbert Bunch
Robert Creech
Sylvan Hayes
Raymond Pennington
Hobart Shepherd
John Stephens

According to HISTORY PMSS Summary 1946-1947 [image 36, page 3]:

At Sunday night vespers, May 11, the service flag, with stars representing 156 former students, was retired. A plaque honoring six former students who lost their lives, Robert Creech, Sylvan Hayes, John Stevens (sic), Raymond Pennington, Hobart Shepherd, and Herbert Bunch, was hung in Laurel House.

The record of the Pine Mountain Church Committee for 1947 also describes the event [image 041]:

May 11. The vesper service was held at Laurel House where the service flag hung. Mr. Glenn LaRue had charge of the service directed toward the retirement of the flag. Members of the Chapel committee read or recited appropriate selections from Scripture and the poets. Two ex-servicemen, Charles Creech and Elmer Lewis, lowered the flag. In its place is a beautiful plaque decorated by Miss Christensen and containing the names of those whose lives were lost in the conflict.

The plaque was hung in the main dining room of Laurel House II on the south wall and remained there until 2016.

ABBIE CHRISTENSEN ART: The Plaque’s Condition

Just when “In Memoriam” was damaged is not clearly understood. It most likely suffered damage along with other pictures (particularly watercolor paintings by John A. Spelman III) that were hanging on a wall in Laurel House II when a large roof leak occurred in the 1980s.

In any event, the small “In Memoriam” remained, seriously damaged, on the walls of Laurel House II until it was removed in 2016. When the work was dismantled to explore the damage and to clean the framed art, a small monogram was discovered in the lower left-hand corner of the paper in the scroll-work — “AWC.” “Abbie Winch Christensen” could be the only name that would fit as the artist behind the tribute. She would have known all the young men on the “In Memoriam” list. Her sorrow at the loss can be seen in the loving care she gave to this poignant work of art. 

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ABBIE WINCH CHRISTENSEN ART: 1947 Calendar

The 1947 CALENDAR is a beautiful addition to the long history of calendars produced by Pine Mountain Settlement School for its Friends. Like “In Memoriam,” the calendar also honors the women and men and the families of the Pine Mountain community. The poem by Ruth E. Campbell from “Mountain Tributary,” which accompanies the beautiful painting by Abbie Winch Christensen, calls forward the deep poverty and despair of the time but also the beauty and hope that sits just on the crest of the mountain. Ruth E. Campbell, a friend of Pine Mountain, had collaborated with artist and Pine Mountain staff, John A. Spelman III, in the first publication of her book Cloud Walking.

In this painting, the abundant Mountain Laurel is foregrounded and a small mountain cabin and out-building sit beside a narrow path. The blue Pine Mountain rises above the scene. The medium is not known but appears to be oil. The original painting is not currently held by the School and its location is unknown.

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See Also:

ABBIE WINCH CHRISTENSEN Staff Biography

ABBIE WINCH CHRISTENSEN Correspondence 1937
ABBIE WINCH CHRISTENSEN Correspondence 1936
ABBIE WINCH CHRISTENSEN Correspondence 1935
ABBIE WINCH CHRISTENSEN Correspondence 1933
ABBIE WINCH CHRISTENSEN Correspondence 1928

ARTS AND CRAFTS at PMSS Guide
ARTS AND CRAFTS Overview

Publications PMSS CALENDAR 1947

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