(b Cedar Rapids, IA, Oct 21, 1891; d Cedar Rapids, IA, May 18, 1965). American painter. Cone began his career painting still-lifes, landscapes, clouds, and barns, and later explored circuses, deserted interiors, and abstractions. Cone is often labelled a Regionalist (see Regionalism), but did not use this term to describe his own work. He was familiar with artistic developments in both America and Europe, yet his trajectory of themes remained distinctly his own. Cone’s compositions evolved over time, gradually distilling representation into hidden complexity. Cone, a close friend of Grant Wood, spent most of his life in Cedar Rapids, IA. Both of them were active in the local arts community and the Stone City Art Colony (1932–3) with Edward Rowan of The Little Gallery. Cone and Wood also travelled to France together (1920), exploring Impressionist styles. Cone graduated from Coe College, Cedar Rapids, in 1914, then studied at the Art Institute of Chicago until enlisting in the US Army in ...