"Birth of power": painting by Willy Pogany of a large red figure above two smaller figures holding glowing orbs, with a blue background and vertical decorative elements on the sides.

Niagara Falls (N.Y.)--Pictorial works

Niagara Falls (N.Y. and Ont.)--Pictorial works

Mural painting "The Birth of Power" by Hungarian artist Willy Pogany
which greeted thousands who annually visited the Schoellkopf Station of the Niagara Falls Power Company. It is a colorful artwork depicting a large red figure at the center, dynamically posed against a blue background with rays extending from above. Below, two smaller figures—one in pale tones and the other in reddish hues—reach upward, connected by glowing orbs. On either side of the central figure are vertical decorative elements resembling waterfalls or cascading textures. This allegorical painting tells in vivid and powerful tone, but with eerie lightness, the romantic birth story of humanity's modern servant—electrical power. Torrents of energy tumble into the eddying pool of human waves from which emerge two poles imparting the spark of life into the giant genie—POWER.

Pogany, Willy, 1882-1955

Adams, Edward Dean. Niagara Power: History of the Niagara Falls Power Company 1886-1918. Niagara Falls, N.Y.: Niagara Falls Power Company, 1927.

State University of New York at Buffalo. University Libraries

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LIB-005_0500

Niagara Falls (N.Y.)

Pan-American Exposition of 1901. LIB-005