Charles Sheeler: Capturing the Steel and Light of Modern America Born in Philadelphia in 1883, Charles Rettrew Sheeler Jr.’s artistic journey began far from the grand salons of European art academies. His early education focused on practical skills – industrial drawing and applied arts at the School of Industrial Art in Philadelphia – a grounding that would profoundly shape his later work. This pragmatic foundation, coupled with a deep appreciation for the Italian masters of the late Middle Ages, particularly Giotto, Masaccio, and Piero della Francesca, instilled in him a fascination with fo…