Which historical ride did he paint from above?

Washington Crossing the Delaware

Grant Wood Quiz: The Iowa Painter Behind American Gothic

This Grant Wood quiz travels to the Iowa farmland that shaped America's most parodied painting. Play 10 interactive questions on Regionalism with Thomas Hart Benton and John Steuart Curry, the house in Eldon with its Gothic window, his sister Nan and dentist Byron McKeeby as models, his study of Flemish painters, Paul Revere's ride and the Stone City art colony.

Start Grant Wood Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

State
Which state was Grant Wood from?
Famous
Which painting is his most famous?
Movement
Which art movement did he help lead?
Peers
Who was another Regionalist painter?
House
In which Iowa town is the American Gothic house?
Woman
Who modeled for the woman?
Man
Who modeled for the man?
Influence
Which European painters influenced his crisp style?
Revere
Which historical ride did he paint from above?
Museum
Where does American Gothic hang?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Which state was Grant Wood from?
Answer: Iowa
He lived there most of his life.
Q2: Which painting is his most famous?
Answer: American Gothic
It was painted in 1930.
Q3: Which art movement did he help lead?
Answer: Regionalism
It celebrated rural America.
Q4: Who was another Regionalist painter?
Answer: Thomas Hart Benton
John Steuart Curry was a third.
Q5: In which Iowa town is the American Gothic house?
Answer: Eldon
Its upper window is Gothic style.
Q6: Who modeled for the woman?
Answer: His sister Nan Wood Graham
Many assumed she was a wife.
Q7: Who modeled for the man?
Answer: His dentist, Byron McKeeby
He holds a pitchfork.
Q8: Which European painters influenced his crisp style?
Answer: Flemish masters like Jan van Eyck
He saw them in Munich.
Q9: Which historical ride did he paint from above?
Answer: The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere
It looks like a toy village.
Q10: Where does American Gothic hang?
Answer: Art Institute of Chicago
It won a prize there in 1930.

The Painter of the Iowa Heartland

Grant Wood was born in Iowa in 1891 and became a leader of Regionalism, with Thomas Hart Benton and John Steuart Curry. The movement celebrated rural American life during the 1930s, in contrast to European modern art.

On a trip to Munich he studied Flemish masters like Jan van Eyck, adopting their crisp detail. In 1930 he painted American Gothic after seeing a house in Eldon, Iowa, with a Gothic-style upper window. His sister Nan Wood Graham and his dentist, Byron McKeeby, posed as the stern pair.

The painting won a prize at the Art Institute of Chicago, which bought it and still displays it. Wood also painted The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere from a high, toy-like view and helped run the Stone City art colony in Iowa.

What This Quiz Teaches

Art fans will enjoy these questions.

Where Wood came from
Which movement he led
Who posed for American Gothic
What influenced him
What else he painted

Did You Know?

Wood taught at the University of Iowa.
Rolling hills fill his landscapes.
He died in 1942.
American Gothic is endlessly parodied.
Nan defended the painting's meaning.