Fortess worked in Woodstock in the 1930's when art was supported by government agencies such as the Works Project Administration ( WPA) and the Public Works of Art Project (PWAP). Fortess found the areas in and around Woodstock to be microcosmic examples of the 'American scene'. The bucolic Woodstock landscape of fields and forests were no longer sources of inspiration. Instead the bustling commercial activity of Kingston Point Landing or industrial sites, such as the one portrayed in Pipeline Hill, offered greater meaning to Fortess and the Woodstock artists of the 1930's and 40's.