California Agriculture and Industry

Gordon Langdon

Langdon portrays two essential agriculture businesses in California: Lumber and dairy farming. He was quite familiar with farming as his family owned a ranch in Olema, California - the barn depicted in the mural was on the property. In fact, the barn takes up a considerable portion of the mural, giving him the opportunity to show the scientific and sanitary nature of an ultra-modern dairy. He devotes a great deal of space to depicting the raised tile floor and the drainage system underneath the barn, while to the right outside, two workmen (fellow artist Frederick L. Olmstead and assistant Tom Hayes) are about to administer antibiotics to one of the herd. He also manages to make his point and an inside joke at the same time: The man depicted hosing off the rear end of a cow in the milking barn is Lucien Labaudt, who painted the staircase leading to the Tower's second floor. Langdon makes use of the gun-slit window in his space by turning it into a silo for the animals - with John Langley Howard peeking out.