Mildred Waltrip facts for kids

Mildred Waltrip (1911–2004) was an American artist and illustrator. She was known for her paintings and for drawing pictures in children's books.

Mildred Waltrip had polio, a sickness that affected her legs, and she wore leg braces. She studied art at the famous School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Art for Public Spaces

Mildred Waltrip was part of a special art program called the Works Progress Administration (WPA). This program helped artists find work during a tough time in history. Between 1936 and 1938, she created two large wall paintings, called murals, for Hatch Elementary School in Chicago. These murals were named World Map and People and American Characters.

Works Progress Administration poster by Mildred Waltrip, around 1936–1938.

Later, in 1995, these murals were taken down. Some parts of them showed people from Africa in a way that was not fair or accurate, using old-fashioned stereotypes. The murals were then put into storage.

Illustrating Children's Books

By the mid-1950s, Mildred Waltrip started drawing pictures for children's books. She helped bring stories and facts to life for young readers. Some of the books she illustrated include Molecules Today and Tomorrow and Research Adventures for Young Scientists.

Books with Her Art

Here are some of the books that Mildred Waltrip illustrated:

• Your World in Motion: The Story of Energy, 1956
• The First Book of Submarines, 1957
• The Adventure Book of Stars, 1958
• The Science Book of Jets And Rockets, 1961
• Science Projects for Young People, 1964

Where You Can See Her Art

Mildred Waltrip's artwork is kept in many important art museums. These include the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Detroit Institute of Arts, and the Baltimore Museum of Art. Her art is also at the Art Institute of Chicago, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.